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t^j ^ y u u ,J u- 


b?&  Ij,  b  .     Class 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL 


WILLIAM    CLEAVER    WILKINSON 

Author  of  "  The  Epic  of  Saul" 


NEW   YORK 

FUNK    &   WAGNALLS   COMPANY 

LONDON   AND  TORONTO 

1897 


Copyright,  1897,  by 

FUNK   &    WAGNAI^S    COMPANY 
[Registered  at  Stationers'  Hall,  Ivondon,  England] 

PRINTED   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES   OF   AMERICA 


CONTENTS.        „, 


PAGE 

Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT            .         .  9 

Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL      ...  43 

Book  III.  SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILIARCH     ...  77 

Book  IV.  BY  NIGHT  FOR  C-ESAREA        .         .         .  115 

Book  V.  SHIMEI  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN    .         .         .  147 

Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX       ....  167 

Book  VII.  "To  CSSAR" 193 

Book  VIII.  SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS   ....  227 

Book  IX.  PAUL  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN       .         .         .  257 

Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED           ...                  .  291 

Book  XL  THE  LAST  OF  SHIMEI         .         .                 .  315 

Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA         ....  339 

Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK 363 


iv  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Book     XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE                    .  .                  395 

Book       XV.  YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX     .  .         .425 

Book      XVI.  INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA          .  .         .         453 

Book    XVII.  THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS         .  .         .     485 

Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA            .         ;         .         .  .         .         5°7 

Book      XIX.  BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA          .  .     537 

Book           XX.  EUTHANASY         .             .             .             .  .                           $69 

Book      XXI.  ARRIVAL       .         .         .         .         .  •         •     597 

Book    XXII.  DRUSILLA  AND    NERO      .-        .  .         .         625 

Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON        .        ••  -      .  .         .     661 

Book  XXIV.  THE  END          .         .         .         ...         691 


THE    EPIC    OF    PAUL 


THE  action  of  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL  begins  with  that  con 
spiracy  formed  at  Jerusalem  against  the  life  of  the  apostle 
which  in  the  sequel  led  to  a  prolonged  suspension  of  his 
free  missionary  career.  It  embraces  the  incidents  of  his 
removal  from  Jerusalem  to  Caesarea,  of  his  imprisonment  at 
the  latter  place,  of  his  journey  to  Rome  for  trial  before 
Caesar,  and  of  his  final  martyrdom. 

The  design  of  the  poem  as  a  whole  is  to  present,  through 
conduct  on  Paul's  part  and  through  speech  from  him,  a  living 
portrait  of  the  man  that  he  was,  together  with  a  reflex  of  his 
most  central  and  most  characteristic  teaching. 


PROEM. 


Paul,  the  new  man,  retrieved  from  perished  Saul, 
Unequalled  good  and  fair,  from  such  unfair, 
Such  evil,  orient,  miracle  unguessed !  — 
Both  what  himself  he  was  and  what  he  taught  — 
This  marvel  in  meet  words  to  fashion  forth 
And  make  it  live  an  image  to  the  mind 
Forever,  blooming  in  celestial  youth, 
Were  well  despair  to  purer  power  than  mine ; 
Help  me  Thou,  Author  of  the  miracle! 


BOOK     I. 
PLOT    AND    COUNTERPLOT. 


!  2  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I. 

Stood  there  but  doubtfully  within  their  power ; 
The  Roman  sway  had  cited  him  —  and  them. 

For,  yesterday,  Paul  in  the  temple-court 
Had  with  fierce  violence  been  set  upon 
By  Jews  who  thought  the  holy  place  profaned 
Through  his  unlawful  bringing  thither  in 
Of  gentile  Greeks  —  had  there  been  set  upon 
And  thence  dragged  forth  with  blows  that  purposed 

death. 

But,  as  when  Stephen  suffered,  so  again 
Now  intervened  the  Roman,  and  this  time 
Forbade  the  turbulence  and  rescued  Paul  — 
Rescued,  but  double-bound  his  hands  with  chains. 
Demanding  then  who  was  the  prisoner, 
And  what  his  crime,  and  nothing  learning  clear 
Amid  the  hubbub  loud  of  various  charge, 
The  Roman  chiliarch  was  conducting  Paul 
Into  the  castle,  by  the  soldiers  borne  — 
Hardly  so  wrested  from  the  eager  hands 
Of  those  enraged  who  thirsted  for  his  blood, 
And  rent  the  air  crying,  "  Away  with  him  !  " — 
When  calmly  to  his  captor-savior,  he 
Addressed  himself  and  asked,  "  May  I  to  thee 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  j^ 

A  few  words  speak  ?  "    "Greek  understandest  thou  •' " 

Exclaimed  the  Roman.     "  Art  thou  then  not  he, 

Not  that  Egyptian,  who  but  late  stirred  up 

Sedition,  and  into  the  wilderness 

Led  out  a  company  four  thousand  strong 

Of  the  Assassins  ? "     "la  Hebrew  am," 

Said  Paul,  "of  Tarsus  in  Cilicia, 

r 

Of  no  mean  city  citizen.     Let  me 

I  pray  thee,  speak  unto  the  multitude." 

Permitted,  Paul,  upon  the  castle  stairs 
Standing,  stretched  forth  his  hand  in  manacles 
Unto  the  tumult  surging  at  his  feet, 
And,  a  great  silence  fallen  upon  those  waves, 
Spoke  in  the  Hebrew  tongue  to  them  and  said  : 
"  Brethren  and  fathers,  my  defence  hear  ye." 
(The  silence  deepened  at  the  Hebrew  words.) 
"  A  Jew  am  I,  who,  though  in  Tarsus  born, 
Was  in  this  city  bred  and  at  the  feet 
Of  that  Gamaliel  taught  the  ancestral  law 
With  every  scruple  of  severity, 
Burning  in  zeal  for  God,  as  now  do  ye. 
And  I  this  Way  hunted  unto  the  death, 
Sparing  from  chains  and  from  imprisonment 


!4  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

Nor  man  nor  woman.     This  will  the  high  priest 

Witness,  and  all  the  Jewish  eldership. 

By  these  commissioned,  to  Damascus  I 

Journeyed,  that,  thence  even,  I  might  hither  bring 

For  punishment  disciples  of  the  Way. 

And  lo,  as,  journeying,  nigh  Damascus  now 

I  drew,  at  noonday  round  about  me  shone 

Suddenly  a  great  light  from  heaven.     To  earth 

Prostrate  I  fell,  and  heard  a  voice  that  said, 

'  Saul,  Saul,  why  art  thou  persecuting  me  ? ' 

'Thou,  thou  —  who  art  thou,  Lord? '  I  said.  And  He  : 

'Jesus  I  am,  Jesus  of  Nazareth, 

Whom  thou  art  persecuting.'     Those  with  me 

Beheld  indeed  the  light,  but  to  the  voice 

That  spake  to  me  were  deaf.     And  I  then  said, 

'  What  wilt  thou,  Lord,  that  I  should  do  ?  '     '  Arise,' 

Said  He,  'and  on  into  Damascus  go  ; 

What  thou  must  do  shall  there  to  thee  be  told.' 

Blind-smitten  with  the  glory  of  the  light, 

Into  Damascus  guided  by  the  hand 

I  came. 

"  There,  Ananias,  a  devout 
Observer  of  the  law,  of  good  renown 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  15 

With  all  the  Hebrew  Damascenes,  found  me. 

I  felt  him,  though  I  saw  him  not,  as  he 

Paused  standing  there  before  me,  and  these  words 

Spake  :   '  Brother  Saul,  receive  thy  sight.'     And  I, 

That  selfsame  hour  my  sight  receiving,  fixed 

My  eyes  on  Ananias,  when  he  said: 

4  The  God  of  our  forefathers  hath  of  thee 

Made  choice  His  will  to  know  and  to  behold 

The  Righteous  One  and  from  His  mouth  a  voice 

To  hear.     For,  witness  shalt  thou  be  for  Him 

To  all  men  of  the  things  thou  hast  beheld 

And  heard.     And  now  why  lingerest  thou  ?     Arise 

And  be  baptized  and  wash  away  thy  sins, 

Calling  upon  His  name.' 

"  Thereafter  I, 

Unto  Jerusalem  returned,  and  here 
Within  the  temple  praying,  into  trance 
Passed,  and  beheld  Him,  as  to  me  He  said: 
'  Haste,  from  Jerusalem  to  go  make  speed, 
For  witness  will  they  not  from  thee  receive 
Concerning  Me.'     '  But,  Lord,'  said  I,  'they  know 
Themselves  how  I,  of  all  men  I,  imprisoned 
And  scourged  from  synagogue  to  synagogue 


1 6  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

Them  that  on  Thee  believed.     And  when  was  shed 

Thy  martyr  Stephen's  blood,  I,  also  I, 

Stood  near,  consenting,  and  their  garments  kept 

Who  slew  him.'     But  the  Lord  to  me  replied: 

'  Depart,  for  I  will  send  thee  forth  far  hence 

In  mission  to  the  Gentiles  — 

To  this  word 

The  throng  to  Paul  gave  patient  ear,  but  now- 
At  sign  and  instigation,  ambushed  erst 
In  waiting  for  the  moment  meet  to  spring, 
And  springing  pregnant  from  the  ready  wit 
Of  Shimei,  when  that  hateful  hint  was  heard 
Of  mission  to  the  Gentiles  through  a  Jew  — 
Rose  an  uproar  of  voices  from  the  crowd, 
As  when  winds  mingle  sea  and  sky  in  storm. 
"  Away  with  such  a  fellow  from  the  earth  !  " 
They  cried  ;  "it  is  not  fit  that  he  should  live." 

A  wild  scene,  for  with  outcry  wild  was  mixed 
Wild  gesture  ;  the  whole  madding  multitude 
Rent  off  their  raiment,  and  into  the  air 
Dust  flung  in  cloud  as  where  a  whirlwind  roars. 
Astonished  stood  the  chiliarch  at  the  sight, 
Nor  doubted  that  some  monster  was  the  man 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  j; 

Against  whom  such  a  storm  of  clamor  raged. 
He  bade  bring  Paul  within  the  castle,  there 
Bade  scourge  him  that  he  might  his  crime  confess. 
Already  they  had  bound  him  for  the  thongs, 
When  Paul  to  the  centurion  standing  by 
Said,  "  Is  it  lawful  for  you  then  to  scourge 
A  man  that  is  a  Roman  —  uncondemned?" 
This  the  centurion  hearing,  straightway  he 
Went  to  the  chiliarch  and  abrupt  exclaimed  : 
"What  is  it  thou  art  on  the  point  to  do? 
For  this  man  is  a  Roman."     Then  to  Paul 
Hastens  the  chiliarch  and,  perturbed,  inquires  : 
"  Tell  me,  art  thou  a  Roman  ?  "     "  Yea,"  said  Paul. 
Surprised,  incredulous  half,  the  chiliarch  cried  : 
"  I  with  an  ample  sum  that  franchise  bought." 
"  But  I,"  calmly  said  Paul,  "was  thereto  born." 

At  that  word  from  their  prisoner,  the  men 
Who  ready  round  him  stood  the  lash  to  ply 
Instantly  vanished,  and  the  chiliarch  too 
Was  panic-stricken  —  now  in  doubt  no  more 
That  Paul  a  Roman  was,  whom  he  had  bound 
For  stripes,  against  a  law  greater  than  he, 
Nay,  sacred  as  the  sacred  majesty 


jg  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

Itself  of  the  Republic  —  ancient  name 
Disguising  empire  !  —  law  forbidding  stripes 
On  any  flesh  that  Roman  title  owned. 

Paul  slept,  in  Roman  chains,  the  Christian's  sleep, 
That  night,  but  ill  at  ease  the  chiliarch  tossed 
In  troubled  slumbers.      He,  with  early  morn, 
To  council  called  the  Jewish  Sanhedrim, 
Set  Paul  unbound  before  them,  and  so  sought 
The  truth  to  know  of  what  on  him  was  charged. 
With  calmly  steadfast  eye  Paul  faced  his  foes, 
But  Shimei  smiled  in  confidence  of  guile  ; 
Whatever  the  accused  might  seek  to  say, 
Affront  should  meet  him  and  torment  his  pride. 
Paul,  his  fixed  eyes  pointing  his  moveless  aim 
Full  in  the  faces  of  the  elders,  said  : 
"  Brethren,  in  all  good  conscience  have  I  lived 
In  loyalty  toward  God  unto  this  day." 
On  such  a  claim  from  such  a  prisoner, 
Angry  the  high  priest  Ananias  cried, 
"  Smite  him  upon  the  mouth  !  "  to  those  near  by. 
Paul  flamed  in  answering  righteous  wrath,  and  said, 
Flashing  a  lightning  from  his  eyes  on  him : 
"  Smite  thee  shall  God,  thou  whited  wall !  And  thou, 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT. 

Sittest  thou  here  to  judge  me  by  the  law, 

And,  the  law  breaking,  biddest  me  be  smitten?" 

The  bolted  word  had  flown  and  found  its  mark, 
And  Paul  stood  quivering  with  the  stern  recoil. 
But  the  bystanders,  tools  of  Shimei, 
In  chorus  of  well-simulated  zeal 
Of  reverence  toward  authority,  cried  out : 
"The  high  priest,  then,  of  God  revilest  thou?" 
Tempting  the  outraged  man  to  further  vent 
Volcanic  of  resentment  at  his  wrong. 
But  Paul  had  tutored  down  his  rebel  will ; 
Meekly  he  said  :  "  Brethren,  I  did  not  know 
That  he  the  high  priest  was,  for  it  is  writ, 
'  Of  one  that  rules  thy  people  speak  not  ill.1 ' 

Through  such  self-recollection  and  self-rule, 
Paul,  master  of  himself  once  more  become, 
Became  likewise  master  of  circumstance. 
Marking  that  Pharisee  and  Sadducee 
Made  up  the  assembly,  he,  with  prudent  choice, 
As  Pharisee  to  Pharisee  appealed. 
"  Brethren,"  he  cried,  "a  Pharisee  am  I, 
From  Pharisees  descended  ;  for  the  hope 


2Q  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I, 

And  resurrection  of  the  dead  it  is 
That  I  this  day  am  judged." 

Discord  hereon 

Arose  of  Pharisee  with  Sadducee, 
Which  atwain  rent  the  whole  assembly  there. 
For  Sadducee  no  resurrection  owned, 
No  angel,  and  no  spirit ;  Pharisee 
These  all  confessed.     A  hideous  clamor  grew: 
And  certain  scribes,  who  with  the  Pharisees 
Sided,  rose  and,  contending  stoutly,  said : 
"  No  evil  find  we  in  this  man  ;  and  if, 
And  if  so  be  indeed,  there  hath  to  him 
A  spirit  spoken,  or  an  angel-          Thus 
A  hot  dissension  waxing,  and  afraid 
Become  the  chiliarch  lest  his  prisoner  be 
In  sunder  torn,  the  soldiery  he  sent 
To  pluck  him  from  amidst  the  wrangling  crowd, 
And  lodge  him  in  the  castle. 

The  next  night 

The  Lord  stood  in  theophany  by  Paul, 
And  said  :  "  Be  of  good  cheer  ;  as  thou  of  me 
Hast  witnessed  in  Jerusalem,  so  must 
Thou  also  yet  witness  in  Rome."     And  Paul 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  2l 

Was  of  good  cheer  in  glad  obedience, 

And  slept  a  sleep  so  leavened  with  happy  dream. 

But  night-long  lonely  vigil  Shimei  kept, 
Stung  from  repose  to  study  of  revenge. 
At  dawn,  his  hatch  of  hell,  quick  by  the  heat 
Of  brooding  hatred  in  that  patient  breast, 
Was  ready  to  come  forth  and  stalk  abroad. 
'  Death  to  apostate  Saul  ! '  his  public  word, 
'  Death  to  that  hated  man! '  was  Shimei's  thought. 

Thought  not  so  much,  as  law  to  him  of  thought, 
Which  formed  and  fixed  the  habit  of  the  mind  ; 
His  thought  was  simply,  '  How  to  get  Paul  slain,' 
His  feeling  was  a  hatred  bent  to  slay ; 
Now,  bent  to  slay  ;  once,  but  to  torture  bent. 
This,  partly  because  hatred  is  like  love 
Herein,  that  it,  by  only  being,  grows - 
Until,  at  last,  usurping  quite  the  man, 
It  overgrows  him  like  a  polypus  ; 
And  partly  because  plot  and  act  of  hate 
Sting  to  find  hateful  more  the  hated  one, 
Hate  against  whom  is  so  self-justified. 
But  Shimei's  hate  of  Paul,  antipathy 
At  first,  deep,  primal,  irreversible, 


22  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

A  doom  born  in  him  when  himself  was  born, 

And  thence  —  from  that  time  forth  when  in  the  hall 

Of  council  Saul  disdained  and  flouted  him  — 

A  conscious,  fostered,  festering  grudge  become  — 

This  hate,  now  grown  by  but  persisting  long, 

And  much  more  grown  through  long  self-exercise, 

Had  yet,  beyond  the  private  argument, 

Its  public  ground  of  warrant  for  itself. 

Mocker  though  Shimei  was,  not  less  was  he, 

To  his  full  measure  of  sincerity, 

Sincerely  in  his  mockery  a  Jew  ; 

His  nation's  scorn  of  Jesus  was  his  scorn, 

And  who  loved  Jesus  for  that  cause  he  hated. 

Buoyed  and  supported  by  the  spirit  rife, 

The  common  conscience,  of  his  countrymen, 

Nay,  conscious  of  approval  and  acclaim 

Without  him,  as  of  genius  blithe  within 

Him,  prompt  to  indirection  and  deceit, 

Shimei,  far  more  than  clear  and  confident, 

Felt  also  something  of  the  fowler's  joy 

In  cunning,  as  for  Paul  his  toils  he  spread. 

All  this  ;  yet  all  was  not  enough  to  fire 
The  hate  that  burned  sevenfold  in  Shimei's  breast. 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  23 

With  all,  there  was  an  alien  element 

Infused,  Tartarean  fuelling  from  beneath, 

A  breath  of  hell  to  blow  his  hate  so  hot. 

No  merely  human  hatred  crucified 

The  Lord  of  glory  and  the  Lord  of  love  ! 

No  merely  human  hatred  followed  Paul 

On  his  angelic  errand  round  the  world, 

With  scourge,  with  ambush,  with  imprisonment, 

And  mouth  agape  to  drink  that  holy  blood  ! 

Forty  fanatic  Jews  were  quickly  found 
To  bind  themselves  by  a  religious  oath 
Of  dreadful  imprecation  on  their  heads 
Neither  to  eat  nor  drink  till  Paul  was  slain. 
Prompt  chance  to  slay  him  Shimei  promised  them  ; 
He  would  procure  that,  on  the  morrow  morn, 
The  chiliarch  should  desire  to  quit  his  doubt 
Concerning  his  strange  prisoner,  by  one  more 
Test  of  his  cause  before  the  Sanhedrim. 
Then,  while  from  the  near  tower  Antonia,  Saul 
At  leisure  to  their  council-hall  was  brought, 
So  large  a  number  of  sworn  arms  in  league 
Might  easily,  with  rash  violence,  breach  their  way 
To  him  amid  his  guard  of  soldiery, 


OF  THK 

UNIVERSITY 


24  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I. 

And,  far  too  suddenly  for  these  to  fend, 
Spill  his  life-blood  like  water  on  the  ground  — 
Whence  could  not  all  the  power  of  Rome  again 
Gather  it  up  to  store  his  veins  withal. 

So  Shimei  plotted,  with  the  guile  of  hate ; 
But,  with  a  wiser  guile,  the  guile  of  love, 
There  counterplotted  a  true  heart  for  Paul. 

Rachel  that  ministry  of  grace  had  plied 
For  Ruth  by  Saul  imprisoned,  and  for  those 
Of  Bethany  bound  with  her  —  where,  meanwhile, 
She  for  Ruth's  children  happy  kept  their  home  — 
Month  after  month,  with  inexhaustible 
Sweet  patience  and  bright  heart  of  hope  and  brave, 
Until,  the  soul  of  persecution  slain 
In  Saul  converted,  they  were  all  let  go 
Beneath  their  wonted  roofs  at  peace  to  dwell ; 
Rachel  first  welcoming  Ruth  safe  home  once  more, 
And  Ruth  then  welcoming  Rachel  still  to  bide. 

But  Lazarus,  toward  Rachel,  to  and  fro 
Daily  seen  moving,  with  that  punctual  truth 
To  tryst  so  beautiful,  more  beautiful 
In  her  who  was  herself  so  beautiful, 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  25 

Whose  every  step,  look,  gesture,  and  least  speech, 

Or  very  silence,  seemed  a  benison- 

Toward  Rachel,  such  beheld  —  a  crescent  dawn 

Brightening  upon  him  to  the  perfect  day, 

Apocalypse  of  lovely--  Lazarus, 

In  secret,  more  and  more  felt  his  heart  drawn, 

Through  all  the  dreaming  hours  he  passed  in  prison. 

Released  at  last,  he  told  his  heart  to  her, 

And  Rachel  learned  to  yield  him  love  for  love  ; 

So,  Saul  consenting  gladly,  they  were  wed. 

The  eldest-born  of  Rachel  now  was  grown 
A  stripling  youth,  in  face  and  person  fair, 
Fair  spoken,  with  a  winning  gift  of  grace 
In  manner,  and  a  conscious  innocence, 
Becoming  conscious  virtue,  written  free 
In  legend  over  all  his  lineaments, 
Where  beamed  likewise  a  bright  intelligence, 
Alert,  beyond  such  years,  with  exercise  ; 
For  Rachel's  had  been  long  a  widow's  child, 
And  long  that  widow's  only,  as  her  first. 
Stephen  they  had  named  their  boy — for  memory. 

It  still  was  dark,  deep  dark  before  the  dawn, 
When  Rachel  rose  from  wrestling  sleepless  dream 


26  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I. 

To  rouse  her  son  from  happy  dreamless  sleep. 
"  Stephen,"  said  she,  "  my  son,  my  heart  divines 
Danger  nigh  imminent  for  one  we  love." 

"  But,  mother,"  said  the  son,  "  mine  uncle  Paul, 
If  him  thou  meanest,  is  safe  in  citadel. 
Those  Romans,  heathen  though  they  be,  and  void 
Of  pity  as  the  nether  millstone  is, 
Are  yet  in  their  hard  way,  and  heathen,  just. 
They  have  the  power,  as  they  have  shown  the  will, 
To  keep  thy  brother  hedged  from  Hebrew  hate." 

"From  Hebrew  hate,  but  not  from  hellish  guile," 
Rachel  replied ;  "  and  hellish  guile,  my  son, 
Thy  mother's  heart,  quickened  with  sisterhood, 
And,  from  some  sad  experience  of  the  world, 
Suspicious  —  nay,  perhaps,  through  deep  divine 
Persuasion  by  the  Holy  Spirit  wrought, 
Intuitive  of  the  future,  and  on  things 
Else  hidden,  inly  privileged  to  look  — 
Yea,  hellish  guile,  my  heart,  somehow  advised, 
Insists  and  still  insists  she  knows,  she  feels, 
This  hour  at  work  against  my  brother  Saul. 
Haste,  get  thee  quickly  to  Gamaliel  — 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  2; 

Brief  his  sleep  is,  and  he  will  be  awake, 
For,  with  his  gathering  years,  now  nigh  five  score, 
Lighter  and  lighter  grow  his  slumbers,  ever 
Broken  and  scattered  by  the  first  cockcrow  — 
Greet  him  from  me  with  worship  as  beseems, 
And,  telling  him  my  fears,  entreat  to  know 
If  aught  that  touches  his  old  pupil  Saul, 
Haply  an  issue  from  the  brooding  brain 
Of  Shimei  to  Saul's  hurt,  have  reached  his  ear. 
Be  wise,  be  wary,  Stephen,  whet  thy  sense, 
Fail  not  to  see  or  hear  whatever  sign 
Glimpses  or  whispers,  smallest  hint  that  may 
Concern  the  safety  of  thine  uncle  Saul. 
How  knowest  thou  but  thy  scouting  walk  this  morn 
Shall  rescue  to  the  world,  in  need  so  deep, 
Yet  many  a  year  of  that  apostleship  ? 
Besides,  with  such  a  sun  quenched  from  our  sky, 
What  then  were  day  prolonged  but  night  to  us  ? 
Go,  and  thy  mother  here  meanwhile  will  pray : 
'  Lord,  speed  my  son,  make  him  discreet  and 
brave  ! '  " 

Brave  and  discreet  the  boy  had  need  to  be ; 
For,  as  he  went,  amid  the  rear-guard  dense 


28  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

Of  darkness  undispersed  before  the  dawn, 

Steering  his  flying  steps  along  the  street, 

And  watching  wary,  with  tense  eye  and  ear, 

To  every  quarter  of  the  dim  dumb  world  — 

A  sudden  thwarting  ray  that  disappeared  ! 

He  paused  on  tiptoe,  leaning  forward,  stood 

One  instant,  with  his  hand  behind  his  ear, 

To  listen,  while  his  noisy  heart  he  hushed  ; 

And  heard,  yea,  footsteps,  with  a  muffled  sound 

Of  human  voices  sibilant  and  hoarse. 

What  meant  it?     Nothing,  doubtless,  yet  well  were 

To  be  unseen,  and  see  —  if  see  he  might  — 

And  hear  unheard,  until  his  way  were  sure. 

With  supple  swift  insinuation,  he 

Slipped  him  beneath  the  slack  ungathered  length 

Of  a  chance-left  rolled  tent-cloth  at  his  feet. 

Two  men  —  one  bore  a  lantern,  darkened  deep 

Behind  the  outer  garment  that  he  wore- 

Drew  nigh,  and  Stephen  held  his  breath  to  hear 

The  name  of  Saul  hissed  out  between  the  twain. 

Slow  was  their  gait,  and  ever  and  anon, 

Halting,  they  checked  their  words,  and  seemed  to 

list, 
As  if  for  comrades  lingering  yet  behind. 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT. 

They  against  Stephen  halted  thus,  and  he 

Lay  breathlessly  awaiting  what  might  fall. 

First  having  paused,  as  hearkening  from  afar  — 

To  naught  but  silence  —  the  two  men  sat  down 

Upon  that  roll  of  tent-cloth,  thus  at  ease 

To  rest  them,  till  the  waited-for  appeared. 

At  Stephen's  very  ear,  he  in  duress 

And  forced  to  hear  them,  there  those  two  ill  men, 

Complotters  in  the  plot  to  murder  Paul, 

Unfolded  in  free  converse  all  their  scheme. 

Fiercely  the  listening  boy  forbade  to  cry 
The  aching  heart  of  eagerness  in  him, 
That  almost  rived  with  its  desire  of  vent. 
Fear  for  himself  could  not  have  held  him  mute; 
Horror  and  hatred  of  that  wickedness 
Swelled  swiftly  in  his  breast,  so  huge  and  hard, 
There  must  have  sprung  from  out  his  lips  a  cry, 
Sharp  like  an  arrow  cleaving  from  its  string, 
Had  not  great  love  been  instant,  stronger  yet, 
Binding  his  heart  to  burst  not,  and  be  dumb. 
So  there  he  lay  as  dead,  so  deathlike  still, 
Until  at  length — the  waited-for  come  up  — 
They  all  went  forward  thence  their  purposed  way. 


29 


30  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I. 

Then  Stephen  lithely  to  his  feet  upsprung 
And,  sped  as  with  his  anguish,  his  disdain, 
His  indignation,  to  be  silent — force 
Pent  up  in  him  from  all  escape  but  speed  — 
Swift,  like  the  roe  upon  the  mountains,  ran 
To  find  Gamaliel,  where  that  ancient  sage 
Sat  on  his  dewy  roof  expecting  morn. 

"  Rachel  my  mother  sends  Gamaliel  hail, 
And  bids  me  haste  to  bring  thee  instant  word  !  " 
So  Stephen,  with  quick-beating  heart  that  broke 
His  words  to  pulses  of  sobbed  sound,  began : 
"  She  says  —  but  I,  in  hither  coming,  learned 
More  than  my  mother  charged  me  with  to  thee. 
Lo,  wicked  men  of  our  own  nation  plot 
This  day  to  shed  my  mother's  brother's  blood. 
They  will  desire  the  Roman  to  send  down 
Mine  uncle  Saul  before  the  Sanhedrim, 
To  be  by  these  examined  once  again  ; 
But  they  will  set  upon  him  while  he  comes, 
And  so,  or  ever  he  can  rescued  be, 
Make  of  mine  uncle  Saul  a  bloody  corpse. 
O  Rabbi,  master  of  mine  uncle  Saul, 
Beseech  thee,  speak,  bid  me,  what  must  I  do  ?  " 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT, 

The  old  man  bent  upon  the  boy  his  brow, 
And,  slowly  rousing  without  motion,  said  : 
"  The  world  grows  gray  in  wickedness,  my  son  ; 
What  the  Lord  God  of  all  intends,  who  knows? 
Most  wise  is  He,  but  deep,  in  many  ways, 
Past  human  finding  out.     Thine  uncle  Saul 
Is  hated  for  himself  by  Shimei 
Yet  more  than  for  his  cause.     And  Shimei 
Is  doubtless  the  artificer  of  this." 
With  inward  adjuration  then,  a  hand 
Uplifted  as  in  gesture  to  repel, 
Gamaliel  deeply  added,  "  O  my  soul, 
Into  the  secret  of  such  man  come  not !" 

Wherewith  the  aged  tremulous  lips  were  mute, 
Though  mutely  moving  still,  as  if  the  words 
Said  themselves  over,  again  and  yet  again, 
Within  him,  of  that  ancient  fending  spell. 
Stephen,  well-schooled  in  awe  of  the  hoar  head, 
Stood  an  uneasy  instant  silent,  then 
Yielded  to  his  untamable  desire 
Of  action  and  impatience  of  delay. 
"  O  Rabban,"  he  importunately  cried, 
"  But  thy  young  servant's  soul  already  God 


32  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

Into  the  secret  of  this  man  has  brought  — 
Doubtless  to  baffle  him  —  knew  I  but  how  !  " 


"  Yea,  verily,  Stephen  ;  also  that  might  chance," 
Gamaliel  answered  with  benignity  ; 
He  almost  let  grave  admiration  breathe, 
Through  softly-lighted  look  and  gentle  tone, 
A  kind  of  benediction  on  the  boy, 
As  he,  unhastened,  felt  the  youthful  haste 
That  made  the  stripling  Stephen  beautiful ; 
"  For  David  was  a  shepherd  lad,  when  he 
Was  chosen  of  God  to  lay  Goliath  low. 
Who  knows  but  thou  shalt  save  thine  uncle  Saul? 
I  loved  him  long  ago  —  when  thou  wast  not ; 
He  went  his  way,  and  I  abode  in  mine, 
Ways  widely  parting,  but  I  love  him  still. 
And  I  would  see  him  yet  before  I  die. 
Tell  him,  Gamaliel  would  see  Saul  once  more. 
Perhaps,  perhaps,  I  might  dissuade  him  yet. 
Thine  uncle,  lad,  was  ever  from  a  youth 
Headstrong  to  think  his  thought  and  will  his  will. 
No  man  might  bend  him  from  his  own  fixed  bent ; 
If  any  man,  then  I;  he  honored  me, 
And  hearkened  reason  from  Gamaliel's  lips. 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  33 

Yea,  send  Saul  hither,  I  would  prove  if  I 
Have  not  still  left  some  saving  power  for  him." 

Gamaliel  spoke  half  as  from  reverie, 
Lapsed  in  oblivion  of  the  present  need. 
4<  Rabban  Gamaliel,"  bold  upspoke  the  boy, 
il  Thy  saving  power  I  pray  thee  now  put  forth 
To  pluck  mine  uncle  from  the  jaws  of  death. 
I  promise  gladly  then  to  bring  thee  Saul, 
If  so  I  may,  when,  by  thy  counsel,  I 
Have  set  him  safe  from  those  that  seek  his  blood. 
These  have  their  mouth  agape  already  now, 
Their  throat  an  open  sepulcher  for  him. 
I  see,  I  see  them  spring  upon  their  prey  — 
O  master,  master,  must  he  die  like  this  ?  " 

The  passionate  pleading  boy  dropped  on  his  knees, 
And  the  knees  clasped  of  the  thus  roused  old  man. 
"  Yea,  I  remember,"  now  Gamaliel  spoke  ; 
"  Weep  not,  my  boy,  but  haste,  my  bidding  do." 
Therewith  Gamaliel  clapped  his  aged  hands, 
When  instantly  a  servant  to  his  call 
Stood  on  the  roof  with,  "  Master,  here  am  I." 
"  An  inkhorn  and  a  pen,  with  parchment  ;  speed  !" 
Shot  from  Gamaliel's  lips,  so  short,  so  sharp 


x>4  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

With  instance,  that  the  man  not  went,  but  flew. 

"  Make  thou  a  table  of  my  knees,  and  write," 

Gamaliel  to  forestalling  Stephen  said  ; 

"  Write  :  '  I,  Gamaliel,  send  this  lad  to  thee ; 

I  know  him  ;  he  will  tell  thee  what  concerns 

Thy  hearing  ;  thou  canst  trust  him  all  in  all.' 

There,  so  is  well  ;  now  superscribe  it  fair  : 

'  To  the  chief  captain  of  Antonia.' 

Run,  carry  this  —  stay,  I  must  sign  it  first 

With  mine  own  hand  for  certainty  to  him. 

Up,  haste  thee  to  the  castle,  ask  for  Saul, 

Him  tell  what   thou  hast  learned,  and  show  him 

this  ; 

Saul  will  to  the  chief  captain  get  thee  brought, 
And  thou  hereby  shalt  win  believing  heed. 
No  thanks,  and  no  farewell,  but  thy  feet  wing  ! " 

So  sped,  but  of  his  own  heart  better  sped, 
Stephen  quick  got  him  to  the  castle  gate, 
Where,  with  Gamaliel's  seal  displayed  — his  truth, 
Patent  in  face  and  voice,  admitting  him- 
He  gained  prompt  privilege  of  speech  with  Paul. 
Paul  heard  the  tidings  that  his  nephew  brought 
And,  summoning  a  centurion,  said  to  him  : 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  or 

"  Pray  thee,  to  the  chief  captain  take  this  youth  ; 
He  has  a  matter  for  his  private  ear." 

So  the  centurion,  taking  Stephen,  went 
To  the  chief  captain,  and  thus  spoke  to  him  : 
"  The  prisoner  Paul  bade  me  to  him  and  asked 
That  I  would  bring  this  youth  to  thee,  who  has 
A  certain  matter  he  would  tell  thee  of." 

The  chiliarch  looked  at  Stephen  glowing  there 
Before  him  in  the  beauty  of  his  youth, 
A  beauty  that  was  more  than  beauty  now, 
Touched  and  illumined  into  nobleness 
By  the  pure  ardor  of  the  soul  within 
Kindling  upon  the  face  in  flames  of  zeal  — 
The  Roman,  on  the  boy  ennobled  so 
Feasting  his  eye  a  moment  in  fixed  gaze, 
Caught  the  contagion  of  that  nobleness. 
A  waft  perhaps  of  reminiscence  waked 
Blew  soft  and  warm  upon  his  heart  from  Rome  ; 
Clear  in  the  mirror  of  the  Hebrew  boy 
Shining  in  sudden  apparition  so, 
Fairer  than  fountain  of  Bandusia, 
There  swam  perhaps  an  image  to  the  eye 


36  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I. 

Of  that  stern  Roman  father,  dear  with  home  ; 
Perhaps  he  thought  of  a  young  Claudius, 
Who,  far  away  beneath  Italian  skies, 
Was  blooming  crescent  in  a  grace  like  that, 
His  father  exile  in  Jerusalem  ! 

However  wrought  on,  Claudius  Lysias, 
Touched  somehow  to  a  mood  of  gentleness, 
Took  Stephen  by  the  hand  and  went  with  him 
Apart  a  little  into  privacy, 

And  said  :     "And  now,  my  pretty  Hebrew  lad, 
What  matter  is  it  thou  hast  hither  brought  ? " 
"  O,  sir,"  said  Stephen,  with  half-downcast  face 
Of  beautifying  shame  that  he  must  bear 
Such  witness  unto  Roman  against  Jew, 
"  There  are  some  Israelites  not  of  Israel ; 
Pray  thee,  judge  not  my  race  by  this  that  I 
Must  tell  thee  of  my  wicked  countrymen. 
Forty  vile  men  have  in  Jerusalem, 
By  one  the  vilest  who  knows  all  the  vile, 
Been  found  to  bind  themselves  by  oath  in  league 
Together  all,  under  a  dreadful  curse, 
Neither  to  eat  nor  drink,  till  they  the  best, 
The  noblest,  of  their  countrymen  have  slain, 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  37 

Thy  prisoner  Paul.     These  presently  will  ask, 

Or  others  speaking  for  them  will  —  high  climbs, 

Sir,  and  wide  spreads,  this  foul  conspiracy 

Of  evil  against  good,  among  the  Jews- 

They  soon  will  ask  that  thou  to-morrow  bring 

Thy  prisoner  before  the  Sanhedrim 

As  of  his  cause  to  certify  thyself. 

But,  while  he  comes,  those  base  complotters  will, 

Lying  in  wait  for  this,  upon  him  fall 

Too  quickly  for  the  soldiers  to  forefend, 

And  slay  him  as  beneath  thy  very  eyes. 

O,  sir,  do  not  thou  give  them  their  desire.'' 

"Thou  lookest  truth,  my  boy,"  the  chiliarch  said  ; 
"  But  a  mad  bloody  plot  thou  warnest  me  of. 
Thou  knowest  these  things?     But  how  these  things 

knowest  thou  ? 
And   how  shall  /  know  that   thou   knowest  these 

things? 
How,  too,  that  thou  speakest  truly  as  thou  knowest  ?  '' 

"  My  mother  is  Paul's  sister,"  Stephen  said, 
"  And  she,  all  in  her  secret  heart,  divined 
Some  mischief  that  impended  over  him, 
And  bade  me  hasten  to  the  wise  and  good 


38  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  I. 

Gamaliel,  counsellor  to  her  and  all, 

And  ask  if  he  knew  aught,  or  aught  advised, 

That  touched  the  safety  of  her  brother  ;  he 

Was  once  Gamaliel's  pupil  well-beloved. 

It  came  to  pass,  as  I  devoured  my  way 

Through  the  deep  dark  before  the  earliest  dawn, 

Whetted  to  heed  whatever  might  be  sign 

Of  import  to  the  purpose  I  would  serve, 

That  a  low  noise  of  voices,  and  a  ray, 

Shot,  so  it  after  proved,  athwart  the  night 

From  out  a  lantern,  for  an  instant  bare, 

That  some  one  carried  underneath  his  robe, 

And,  by  pure  hap,  or  haply  for  a  hint 

From  far  to  comrade,  or  to  light  his  course, 

Let  shine  that  moment  through  the  parted  folds  — 

It  chanced,  I  say,  that  such  a  sudden  sign  — 

For  sign  I  found  it  —  made  me  haste  to  hide 

Where  I,  unmarked,  might  mark,  both  eye  and  ear. 

O,  sir,  God  sent  those  wicked  twain  so  nigh 

Me  I  could  plainly  hear  them,  every  word, 

Unfold  the  counsel  of  their  wickedness. 

As  soon  as  freed  by  their  departure,  I 

Flew  to  Gamaliel,  told  him  all,  from  him 

At  last  received  instruction  and  strict  charge 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT. 

To  hasten  hither,  seek  out  Paul,  access 
Secure  through  him  to  thee,  and  in  thine  hand 
Give  this,  Gamaliel's  word,  for  proof  of  me." 

Stephen  stood  silent,  and  the  chiliarch  read  ; 
"Aye,  as  I  thought,"  he  slowly,  musing,  spoke  ; 
"  I  did  not  doubt  thy  truth,  my  boy,  before, 
I  myself  did  not,  though  the  chiliarch  did, 
As  by  his  office  bound  to  scruple  deep, 
And  ever  doubt,  till  doubt  by  proof  be  quelled. 
This  well  agrees  with  the  wild,  heady  way 
Of  the  whole  restless,  reckless  race  of  Jews. 
They  count  no  cost,  of  peril,  or  of  pain, 
Loss,  labor,  naught ;  impossibility 
Is  but  temptation  to  attempt  —  in  vain. 
Was  never  city  like  Jerusalem, 
Menace  of  mob  in  every  multitude  ! 
Well,  well,  my  lad,  I  trust  thee,  go  thy  way, 
Say  naught  of  this  to  any  one  abroad  ; 
I  will  take  care  no  harm  shall  happen  Paul. 
Thou  hast  well  done  to  bring  this  word  to  me; 
I  should  have  felt  it  for  a  vexing  thing 
Had  thus  a  Roman  in  my  custody 
Disgracefully  been  slain  with  violent  hands. 


39 


40  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  I. 

But  thou  it  seems  lovest  thy  kinsman  Paul ; 
Now  for  thy  youth,  and  for  thy  comely  face, 
And  for  the  service  thou  hast  wrought  for  me, 
I  give  thee  thy  request,  what  wilt  thou  have? 
Be  prudent,  so  that  I  need  not  repent, 
And,  so  that  thou  need  not  repent,  be  bold. 
Ask  widely,  wisely,  for  thine  uncle  Paul." 

"  I  thank  thee,  sir,  for  this  thy  grace  to  me," 
Said  Stephen;  "but  for  Paul  I  nothing  ask, 
Sure  as  I  am  he  has  what  he  desires ; 
For  he  has  learned  in  whatsoever  state 
He  be,  therein  to  be  content  —  so  I 
Have  heard  mine  uncle  say,  in  telling  what, 
Strange  hap  and  hard  to  me  it  often  seemed, 
Has  him  befallen  in  wandering  through  the  world. 
Still,  if  I  might  two  things  in  one  desire, 
Though  not  for  Paul,  yet  partly  for  his  sake, 
I  this  would  crave  from  thee,  that  I  may  here 
Bide  with  mine  uncle,  or  with  him  go  hence, 
If  hence  thou  sendest  him;  that  is  one  thing; 
And  this  the  other  is,  that  I  may  bid 
Gamaliel  hither,  here  to  visit  Paul. 
Gamaliel  wishes  to  see  Paul  once  more, 


Book  I.  PLOT  AND  COUNTERPLOT.  41 

And  Paul  I  know  would  gladly  yet  again 
Greet  his  beloved  master  face  to  face. 
Doubtless  the  last  time  it  will  be  to  them ; 
For  he,  Gamaliel,  waxes  very  old, 
Almost  five  score  the  tale  is  of  his  years." 

"  Thou  askest  little  ;  all  is  granted  thee," 
The  Roman  said,  and  that  centurion  charged  : 
"  Let  this  lad  come  and  go,  unchecked,  at  will, 
Or  bide  companion  with  the  prisoner  Paul." 
"  And  thou,  my  little  Hebrew,"  added  he, 
Apart,  "  behooves  thou  know  the  time  is  short 
For  Paul  to  tarry  in  Antonia. 
This  very  night,  I  send  him  forth  with  haste 
To  Csesarea  from  Jerusalem  ; 
Both  for  his  safety,  and  my  quiet,  this. 
Thou  shalt  go  with  him,  if  thou  choose  to  go. 
Remember  that  I  trust  thee,  and  be  dumb." 

Benignantly  dismissed  thus,  Stephen  first 
Home  hied  him  to  his  mother  Rachel,  her 
Told  what  had  fallen  and  comforted  her  heart ; 
Then  to  Gamaliel  bore  the  chiliarch's  word, 
Bidding  him  freely  come  to  visit  Paul. 


BOOK     II. 
PAUL   AND   GAMALIEL. 


THE  aged  Gamaliel  has  his  wish  and  enjoys  a  prolonged 
interview  with  the  prisoner  Paul  in  the  castle  where  the  latter 
is  confined  —  young  Stephen  being  present.  The  result  is 
Gamaliel's  conversion  to  Christianity;  but  this  is  followed  by 
the  old  man's  peaceful  death  on  the  couch  where  he  had  been 
resting  while  he  talked.  So  peaceful  is  the  death  that,  in 
the  darkness  of  the  late  evening,  Paul  and  young  Stephen 
are  not  aware  that  it  has  occurred. 


PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL. 

His  eye  now  dim,  as  too  his  natural  force 
Abated  —  for  the  long  increase  of  years, 
Each  lightly  like  a  gentle  white  snow-shower 
Descending  on  his  shoulders  scarcely  felt, 
Grew  a  great  weight  at  length  that  his  tall  form 
Stooped,  and  his  steps  made  gradually  slow- 
Gamaliel,  stayed  in  hand  by  Stephen,  walked, 
Gazed  on  of  all  with  worship  where  he  passed 
Gathering  the  salutations  of  the  street, 
Meet  revenue  of  his  reverend  age  and  fame, 
Until  he  entered  at  Antonia  gate. 
Paul  met  his  master  with  a  welcoming  kiss, 
Then  led  him  forward  to  a  couch,  whereon 
The  aged  man  his  limbs  to  rest  composed. 
There  kneeling  by  him,  Paul  upon  his  neck 
Wept  in  warm  tears  the  pathos  of  his  love. 

"  O  great  and  gentle  master  of  my  youth, 
Rabban  Gamaliel,  Saul,  in  many  things 


46  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

Other  than  he  was  erst,  is  still  the  same 

In  his  old  love  and  loyalty  to  thee  !" 

Such  words  Paul  found,  when  he  his  heart  could 

tame 
From  inarticulate  passion  into  speech. 

"Yea,  changed,  my  son,  in  many  things  art  thou," 
Gravely  Gamaliel  framed  reply  to  Paul, 
"  In  many  things  changed,  and  in  some  things  much. 
Thou  too,  my  son,  art  older  grown,  like  me- 
Nay,  like  me,  not.     Thou  art  but  older  ;   I, 
Past  being  older,  now  am  truly  old. 
Yet  old  art  thou  beyond  thy  proper  years  ; 
Life  has  been  more  than  lapse  of  time  to  thee, 
To  bleach  the  youthful  raven  of  thy  locks 
To  such  a  whiteness  as  of  whited  wool ; 
And  all  thine  aspect  is  of  winter  age, 
Closed  without  autumn  on  short  summer  time. 
It  should  not  grieve  me,  but  indeed  it  grieves, 
To  see  thee  thus  before  thy  season  old. 
I  could  have  wished  to  live  myself  in  thee, 
Hereafter,  a  long  life  of  use  again, 
As  that  good  Hillel  lived  —  not  worthily  — 
Again  in  me,  Gamaliel,  hastening  hence, 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  47 

I  now,  less  happy,  none  inheriting  me. 

As  my  soul's  son,  O  Saul,  I  counted  thee, 

Thee,  chosen  of  all  my  pupils  to  such  kin  ; 

That  thou,  of  all,  shouldst  separate  thyself 

From  the  good  part,  and  from  thy  father's  side, 

To  choose  thy  lot  with  aliens  and  with  foes ! 

What  ruin  of  what  hope  !     Already  now, 

The  prime,  the  flower,  the  glory,  of  the  strength 

Unmatchable  for  promise  that  was  Saul, 

Spent,  squandered,  irrecoverably  waste  ! 

Nor  this  even  yet  the  worst ;  for,  worse  than  waste, 

Saul  has  all  used  to  rend  what  was  to  mend, 

To  scatter  what  to  gather  need  was  sore, 

And  what  asked  wise  upbuilding  to  pull  down. 

O  Saul,  Saul,  Saul,  my  son,  what  hast  thou  wrought ! 

O  Israel,  O  my  people,  this  from  Saul ! " 

The  old  man  shook,  ceasing,  with  tearless  sobs, 
And  in  hands  trembling  hid  his  face  from  Paul. 
Paul  silently  a  moment  bowed  himself  - 
Like  blinded  Samson  leaning  hard  against 
The  pillars  of  the  palace  of  the  lords 
Philistine,  so  Paul  bowed  himself  against 
The  pillars  of  Gamaliel's  house  of  trust, 


48 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 


In  one  great  throe  and  agony  of  prayer ; 
Then  said  :  "  O  thou  hoar  head  most  reverend, 
My  master,  how  those  words  of  thine  pierce  me  ! 
Far,  far  more  easily  have  I  born  all  ills, 
Though  many  and  heavy,  that  on  me  have  fallen, 
Than  now  such  words  I  hear  of  pained  reproach, 
Thrice  grievous  as  thus  gracious,  from  thy  lips. 
How  shall  I  find  wherewith  to  answer  thee? 
I  think  thou  knowest,  my  master,  that  I  love 
My  nation,  and  a  thousand  times  would  die 
To  save  from  death  my  kindred  in  the  flesh. 
Not  willingly  do  I  seem  even  to  rend 
The  oneness  of  my  people  so  asunder. 
Scatter  I  do  not,  if  I  seem  to  scatter : 
I  sift  and  choose,  and  cast  the  bad  away  ; 
That  is  not  scattering,  it  is  gathering  rather. 
Nor  is  it  I  do  this,  but  by  me  God. 
Reprobate  silver  still  some  souls  will  be, 
And  rightly  so  men  call  them,  for  the  Lord, 
He  hath  rejected  them,  the  judging  Lord. 
This  is  that  word  of  Malachi  fulfilled  — 
Whom  also  thou,  O  master,  once,  inspired 
Perhaps,  beyond  our  dreaming,  from  the  Lord, 
Recalledst,  when  our  seventy  elders  sat 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL. 

Consulting  how  most  prudently  they  might 

Slay  those  apostles  of  the  Nazarene. 

Thou  warnedst  us  more  wisely  than  our  hearts 

Were  meekly  wise  enough,  enough  to  heed. 

For,  'The  Lord  cometh,'  saidst  thou  then,  and, 

'Who 

Of  us,'  thou  askedst,  'who  of  us  shall  bide 
The  day  of  that  approach  ?  '     '  Not  surely  he,' 
Thou  answeredst,  prophet-wise,  '  surely  not  he, 
Then  found  in  arms  against  God  and  His  Christ.' 
And  did  not  Malachi  foretell  that  He, 
The  Angel  of  the  covenant,  should  sit 
As  a  refiner  and  a  purifier, 
To  purge  the  sons  of  Levi  of  their  dross  ? 
So  sits  He  now,  attending  in  the  heavens, 
Until  appear  a  people  purified, 
Israel  gathered  out  of  Israel, 
A  chosen  peculiar  people  for  Himself. 

"  Thou  knowest  how  I  hated  once  this  name, 
And  persecuted  to  the  death  His  church. 
I  raged  against  Jehovah  ;  mad  and  blind, 
On  the  thick  bosses  of  His  buckler  rushed. 
But  He,  Jehovah,  met  me  in  the  way 


49 


50  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

With  His  sword  drawn  and  slew  me  where  I  stood. 
One  stroke,  like  living  lightning,  and  I  fell ; 
Saul  was  no  more,  but  in  his  stead  was  Paul." 

Paul  therewith  paused,  awaiting ;   for  he  saw 
A  motion  change  the  listener's  attitude. 
Gamaliel  turned  toward  Paul,  and  looked  at  him, 
A  grave,  a  sad,  inquiry  in  the  gaze. 
"  What  dost  thou  mean  ?  "  almost  severely  he, 
With  something  of  his  magisterial  wont, 
Inveterate,  in  the  gesture  of  his  eye 
And  in  his  tone  expressed,  now  said  to  Paul : 
"What  dost  thou  mean?     Thou  riddlest  thus  with 

me. 

The  Lord  slew  thee,  then  made  alive  again 
Not  thy  slain  self,  but  some  new  other  man ! 
Meet  is  it  thou  shouldst  speak  in  parable 
Thus  to  thy  master  in  his  hoary  age  ? 
Plain,  and  forthwith,  what  meanest  thou,  son  Saul  ?  " 

"  I  would  not  vex  with  darkened  words  thine  ear, 
My  master,"  gently  deprecated  Paul ; 
"  But  otherwise  how  can  I,  than  in  words 
Dark-seeming,  frame  of  things  ineffable 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  UAJW.lKL.  5, 

Shadow  or  image  only  ?     God 
His  Son  in  me  ;  thenceforth  no  longer  I 
Lived,  but  Christ  in  me.     I  am  not  myself. 
The  self  that  once  was  I,  was  crucified 
With  Jesus  on  that  cross,  with  Jesus  then 
Was  buried,  and  with  Jesus  rose  again, 
To  be  forever  other  than  before. 

"  I  journeyed  to  Damascus  glorying, 
In  my  old  heart,  the  heart  thou  knewest  for  Saul, 
Against  the  name,  and  those  that  owned  the  name, 
Of  Jesus,  to  destroy  them  from  the  earth. 
But  Jesus,  in  a  terror  of  great  light, 
Met  me  and  smote  me  prostrate  on  the  ground. 
A  voice  therewith  I  heard,  the  voice  was  wide, 
And  all  my  members  seemed  one  ear  to  hear 
That  voice,  which  shone  too,  like  the  light  around 
Me  that  had  quenched  the  midday  sun  ;  it  pressed 
At  every  pore  with  importunity 
So  dreadful  that  the  world  became  a  sound  : 
'  Saul,  Saul,  why  art  thou  persecuting  me  ?  ' 
'  Who  art  thou,  Lord  ?  '  my  trembling  flesh  inquired. 
'Jesus  I  am  whom  thou  dost  persecute,' 
I  heard  through  all  my  members  in  reply. 


52  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 

"  I  cannot  tell  thee,  master,  how  my  soul, 
All  naked  of  its  flesh  investiture, 
Lay  quivering  to  the  touch  of  sight  and  sound. 
Into  annihilation  crushed,  my  pride, 
My  pride,  my  hate,  the  fury  of  my  zeal, 
The  folly  and  the  fury  of  my  zeal 
Against  God  and  His  Christ,  were  not,  and  I 
Myself  was  not,  but  Christ  in  me  was  all. 
Thenceforth  to  me  to  live  was  Christ,  and  Christ 
None  other  than  that  Man  of  Calvary, 
The  Jesus  whom  we  crucified  and  slew. 
Rabban  Gamaliel,  then  knew  I  that  God 
Had  visited  His  people  otherwise 
Than  we  were  used  to  dream  that  He  would  come, 
In  glory,  and  in  splendor,  and  in  power, 
To  overwhelm  our  enemies,  and  us 
To  the  high  places  of  the  earth  lift  up. 
Yea,  otherwise,  far  otherwise,  than  so, 
Had  our  God  visited  His  people  —  hid 
That  glory  which  no  man  could  see  and  live  — 
Sojourning  in  the  person  of  one  born 
Lowly,  to  teach  us  that  the  lowly  place, 
And  not  the  lordly,  is  for  us  to  choose. 
Whoso  the  lowly  place  shall  choose,  and,  prone 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  53 

Before  Jehovah  humbled  to  be  man 

In  Jesus  Christ  of  Nazareth,  fall  down 

To  worship,  and,  believing,  to  obey, 

Him  will  the  Lord  God  show  Himself  unto, 

Since  unto  such  He  can,  such  being  like 

Himself  and  able  to  behold  His  face." 

Silence  between  them,  silence  filled  to  Paul 
With  intercession  of  the  Spirit,  He 
In  groanings  that  could  not  be  uttered  praying; 
And  to  Gamaliel  silence  filled  with  awe. 

A  pride  not  inaccessible  to  touch 
From  the  divine,  and  not  incapable 
Of  moments  almost  like  humility, 
Was  nature  to  Gamaliel  that  sometimes 
Renewed  him  in  his  spirit  to  a  child. 
He  lay  now  like  an  infant  tremulous 
That  feels  the  motion  of  the  mother's  breast, 
But  other  motion,  of  its  own,  has  not. 
The  awful  powers  of  the  world  to  come, 
Benign  but  awful,  brooded  over  him  ; 
Eternity  a  Presence  watching  Time  ! 

Such  breathless  silence  of  the  elder  twain 


54  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 

Left  audible  the  breathing  of  the  boy, 

Young  Stephen,  who,  worn  weary  with  his  hours 

Of  over-early  anxious  walk  and  watch, 

Had  found  the  happy  haven,  ever  nigh 

To  youth  and  health  and  innocence  o'erwrought, 

And  dropped  his  anchors  in  the  sounds  of  sleep. 

Thus  then  stretched  out  remiss  upon  the  floor, 

As  if  unconscious  body  without  soul, 

Lay  Stephen  slumbering  there,  beside  those  two 

So  wakeful  that  each  might  in  contrast  seem 

Soul  only,  without  body,  soul  disclad. 

A  blast,  not  loud,  of  trumpet  sudden  blown 

For  signal,  and  a  clangor  as  of  stir 

Responsive  from  the  mailed  feet  of  men, 

Broke  on  the  stillness  from  the  court  without. 

Gamaliel,  rousing  from  his  reverie, 

Gazed  deep  on  Paul,  who  met  his  master's  eye  — 

Gazed  long  and  deep  with  slow-perusing  look. 

"  Look  on  me,  Saul,  and  let  me  look  on  thee," 
At  length  Gamaliel  said,  "  look  on  thee  still ; 
Steady  thine  eye,  if  that  thou  canst,  my  son, 
And  my  look  take,  unruffled,  like  a  spring 
Sunken  beneath  the  winging  of  the  wind  ; 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  5 

Stay,  let  me  sound  within  thee  to  the  deeps, 
And  touch  the  bottom  of  thy  being,  there 
At  leisure  with  mine  eye  the  truth  explore. 
Be  pure  and  simple,  if  thou  mayest ;  cloud  not 
My  seeing  with  aught  other  than  sincere, 
Nor  cross  with  baffling  thwart  perversity." 

Gamaliel,  leaning  on  his  elbow,  fast 
His  aged  vision,  like  an  eagle's,  fixed 
On  Paul,  and  through  the  windows  of  his  soul, 
Wide  open,  as  into  a  crystal  sky 
Gazing,  beheld  his  thoughts  orbed  into  stars. 
Half  disappointed  and  half  satisfied, 
The  gazer  slowly  let  the  look  intense 
Fade  from  his  eyes,  and  pass  into  a  deep 
Withdrawn  expression,  as  of  one  who  sees, 
Unseeing,  things  without,  and  wraps  his  mind 
In  contemplations  of  an  inward  world. 

"No  conscious  falseness,"  murmured  he,  aloud, 
Yet  inly,  as  communing  with  himself  ; 
41  No  conscious  falseness  there,  the  same  clear  truth 
That  ever  was  the  character  of  Saul ; 
No  falseness,  and  no  subtle  secret  flaw, 
Unconscious,  in  the  soundness  of  the  mind; 


5 6  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 

The  same  sane  sense  that  marked  him  from  of  old. 
He  has  been  deceived;  how  could  he  be  deceived? 
That  light  which  fell  around  him  at  mid-noon, 
Who  counterfeited  that  ?     It  might  have  been 
Force  from  the  sun  that  smote  him  in  the  brain, 
As  he  was  smitten  whom  Elisha  healed, 
That  son  of  promise  to  the  Shunammite  — 
Nay,  that  had  made  a  darkness,  and  not  light, 
To  him,  and  dulled  his  senses  not  to  hear, 
And  dulled  his  fancy  not  to  feign,  such  voice 
As  that  which  spake  so  dreadfully  to  him. 
Astounding  voice,  that  uttered  human  speech 
And  yet,  like  thunder,  occupied  the  world ! 
Did  Saul  discern  the  tongue  in  which  it  spake  ? 
Perhaps  some  mere  illusion  of  the  mind, 
Whimsical  contradiction  to  the  thought 
That  had  so  long  been  uppermost  therein, 
Imposed  itself  upon  him  for  the  truth; 
Perhaps  some  automatic  stroke  reverse 
Of  overwrought  imagination  made 
A  momentary,  irresponsible 
Conceit  of  fancy  seem  a  fact  of  sense  ; 
Perhaps,  not  hearing,  he  but  deemed  he  heard. 
If  he  distinguished  clearly  what  the  tongue 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL  57 

Was  of  the  voice  that  spake,  then  —  I  will  ask 

And  see.     Those  words,  Saul,  which  thou  seemedst 

to  hear, 
What  were  they,  Greek  or  Hebrew?     Didst  thou 

heed 

So  as  to  mark  the  manner  of  the  speech, 
Or  peradventure  but  the  meaning  take?" 

"  Hebrew  the  words  were,  master,"  Saul  replied; 
"  If  ever  it  were  possible  for  me 
To  lose  them  from  my  memory,  mine  ear 
Would  hear  their  haunting  echo  evermore. 
Such  light,  such  sound,  forsake  the  senses  never. 
O  master,  when  God  speaks  to  man,  doubt  not 
He  finds  the  means  to  certify  Himself. 
Let  Him  now  certify  Himself  to  thee, 
Through  me,  me  the  least  worthy  of  such  grace, 
To  be.  ambassador  of  grace  from  Him !  " 

Paul's  words  were  not  so  eloquent  as  Paul. 
He  to  such  conscious  noble  dignity 
Joined  such  supreme  effacement  of  himself; 
Burned  with  such  zeal  devoid  of  eagerness  ; 
A  manner  of  entreaty  that  was  his, 
Not  for  his  own,  but  all  for  other's  sake, 


5  8  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

Made  such  a  sweet  chastised  persuasiveness, 
From  self-regarding  purpose  purified  ; 
Meekness  of  wisdom  such  clothed  on  the  man 
With  an  investiture  of  awfulness  ; 
While,  fairer  yet,  a  most  unworldly  light, 
A  soft  celestial  radiancy,  diffused, 
Self-luminous,  illuminating  all, 
The  light  divine  of  supernatural  love, 
Upon  him  from  a  sacred  source  unseen 
Flung  such  a  flush,  like  sunrise  on  some  peak 
Of  lonely  height  first  to  salute  the  sun  ; 
That  Paul,  to  whoso  had  beholding  eyes, 
Shone  as  a  milder  new  theophany. 

Gamaliel  had  not  eyes  for  all  he  saw. 
He  slowly  from  his  leaning  posture  sank 
Relapsed  upon  the  couch,  clasping  his  hands. 
Half  to  himself  and  half  to  Paul,  he  spoke  : 
"  My  mind  is  sore  divided  with  itself. 
It  is  as  if  the  heavenly  firmament 
Were  shifted  half  way  round  upon  its  pole, 
And  east  to  west  were  changed,  and  west  to  east ; 
All  things  seem  opposite  to  what  they  were. 
Strange,  strange,  incomprehensible  to  me ! 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  59 

But  strangest,  most  incomprehensible, 

Thou,  what  thou  art  to  what  thou  wast,  O  Saul  ! 

Thou  wast,  though  ever  not  ungentle,  proud 

Ever,  the  proudest  of  the  Pharisees. 

I  loved  thee,  I  admired  thee,  for  thy  pride. 

Pride  did  not  seem  like  arrogance  in  thee, 

But  meet  assumption  of  thy  proper  worth ; 

Rather,  such  air  in  thee,  as  if  thou  woredst 
A  mantle  of  thy  nation's  dignity, 

Committed  by  the  suffrages  of  all 

Unto  the  worthiest  to  be  worthily  worn. 

And  now  this  Saul,  our  paragon  of  pride, 

Through  whom  our  suffering  nation  felt  herself 

Uplifted  from  the  dust  of  servitude, 

In  prophecy  by  example,  to  her  true, 

Long-forfeited  inheritance,  to  be 

One  day  restored  to  her,  of  regal  state  — 

This  Saul  I  see  beside  me  here  a  gray 

Old  man  humbling  himself,  humbling  his  race, 

In  abject  posture  of  prostration  bowed 

Before  — whom  ?     Why,  nobody  in  the  world  ! 

Before  —  what?     Why,  the  phantom  of  a  man 

Led  through  low  life  to  malefactor's  death ! 

Impossible  transformation,  to  have  passed 


60  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

Upon  that  proud  high  Saul  whom  once  I  knew ; 
Impossible  perversion,  baffling  me  ! 
Impossible,  but  that  with  mine  own  eyes, 
But  that  with  mine  own  ears,  I  witness  it." 

In  simple  helpless  wonder  and  amaze 
More  than  in  wroth  rejection  scorn-inspired, 
Gamaliel  thus  had  uttered  forth  his  heart. 
Paul  had  his  answer,  but  he  held  it  back, 
Respectfully  awaiting  further  word 
Seen  ripe  and  ready  on  Gamaliel's  lips. 
A  question,  still  of  wonder,  soon  it  came : 
"  Tell  me,  what  hast  thou  gained,  in  all  these  years 
Of  thy  most  strange  discipleship,  my  son  ?  " 

A  pathos  of  compassion  tuned  the  tone 
With  which  Gamaliel  so  appealed  to  Paul. 
Paul,  with  a  pathos  of  sweet  cheerfulness, 
In  dark  and  bright  of  paradox  replied : 
"  Gained  ?    I  have  gained  of  many  things  great  store ; 
Much  hatred  from  my  erring  countrymen  ; 
Much  chance  of  thankless  service  for  their  sake  ; 
Stripes  many,  manacles,  imprisonments, 
Beatings  with  rods,  bruisings  with  stones,  shipwrecks, 
A  night  and  day  of  tossing  in  the  deep; 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  6 1 

Far  homeless  wanderings  up  and  down  the  world ; 
Perils  on  perils  multiplied,  no  end, 
Perils  of  water  —  wave  and  torrent  flood  - 
Perils  by  mine  own  countrymen  enraged, 
Perils  from  heathen  hands,  perils  pursued 
Upon  me,  ceasing  not,  wherever  men 
In  city  gather,  or  in  wilderness; 
In  the  waste  sea,  still  perils;  perils  still 
Among  false  brethren  ;  these,  and  weariness 
With  painfulness,  long  watchings  without  sleep, 
Hunger  and  thirst  endured,  oft  fastings  fierce, 
Cold  to  the  marrow,  shuddering  nakedness. 
Such  things  without,  to  wear  and  waste  the  flesh, 
And  then  beside,  the  suffering  of  the  spirit 
In  care  that  comes  upon  me  day  by  day 
For  all  the  scattered  churches  of  the  Lord. 
I  have  not  missed  good  wages  duly  paid  ; 
Gain  has  been  mine  in  every  kind  of  loss." 

Paul's  answer  turned  Gamaliel's  sentiment 
Into  pure  wonder,  pity  purged  away. 
Deeper  and  deeper  in  perplexity 
Sank  the  old  man,  the  more  in  thought  he  strove  ; 
As  when  the  swallow  of  a  quicksand  sucks 


62  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

Downward  but  faster  one  who  writhes  in  vain. 

Silent  he  listening  lay,  and  Paul  went  on  : 

"  I  have  thus  counted  as  the  vain  world  counts, 

Summing"  the  gains  of  my  apostleship. 

I  myself  reckon  otherwise  than  thus. 

For,  what  was  gain  to  me,  in  that  old  state 

Wherein  thou  knewest  thy  disciple  Saul, 

This  count  I  now  but  only  loss  and  dross, 

Yea,  all  things  count  but  dross,  all  things  save  one, 

To  know  Christ  Jesus,  and  be  known  of  Him. 

That  knowledge  is  the  one  true  treasure  mine ; 

True,  for  eternal ;  mine,  for  not  the  world, 

Nor  life,  nor  death,  nor  present  things,  nor  things 

To  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth,  nor  aught  beside 

Created  in  the  universe  of  God, 

Can  from  me  wrest  this  one  true  good  away. 

I  have  had  sorrow,  but  amid  it  joy ; 

Pain  has  been  mine,  but  hidden  in  it  peace  ; 

Rest,  deeper  than  the  weariness,  has  still 

My  much-abounding  weariness  beguiled  ; 

Immortal  food  my  hunger  has  assuaged, 

And  drink  of  everlasting  life,  my  thirst. 

I  have  sung  praises  in  imprisonment, 

At  midnight,  with  my  feet  fast  in  the  stocks, 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  63 

And  my  back  bleeding  raw  from  Roman  rods ; 

So  much  the  spirit  of  glory  and  of  power 

Prevailed  to  make  me  conqueror  of  ill. 

Tossed  in  whatever  sea  of  bitterness, 

Wide  as  the  world,  and  weltering  with  waves, 

A  fountain  of  sweet  water  still  I  find 

Fresh  as  from  Elim  rising  to  my  lips. 

A  parable  in  paradox,  sayest  thou, 

But  —  " 

Stephen  here  his  eyes  wide  open  laid 
And  looked  a  look  of  simple  love  on  Paul. 
His  sleep  had  sudden-perfect  been,  as  night 
At  the  equator  instantly  is  dark; 
And  now,  as  day  at  the  equator  dawns 
Full  splendor,  and  no  twilight  of  degrees, 
So  Stephen  was  at  once  and  all  awake. 
He  straight,  without  surprise,  remembered  all, 
Or,  needing  not  remember,  recognized. 
Paul  caught  his  nephew's  upward  look  of  love, 
And  sheathed  it  in  the  light  of  his  own  eyes, 
Which,  downward  bent  a  moment  on  the  boy, 
Gave  him  his  gift  with  usury  again. 
"Behold,"  said  Paul,  "my  parable  made  plain 


64  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

By  parable  not  dark  with  paradox. 

A  sea  of  bitterness  was  yesterday 

Poured  round  me  in  that  madding  multitude 

That  tossed  me  on  the  shoulders  of  its  waves ; 

But  here  is  this  my  loving  nephew,  Stephen, 

A  fountain  of  sweet  water  in  the  sea  — 

k 

Art  thou  not,  Stephen?  —  whence  to  drink  my  fill. 

But  this  is  parable  of  parable ; 

No  more  —  for  what  I  mean  is  still  to  speak. 

Know,  then,  there  is  no  earthly  accident 

Of  evil  that  has  happened  me,  or  can 

Happen,  nay,  and  no  swelling  flood  of  such, 

Of  any  power  at  all  to  touch  with  harm 

The  peace  that  passeth  understanding,  fixed 

By  Jesus  in  my  inward  firmament ; 

The  sea  less  vainly  might  assail  the  stars." 

"  If  this  thou  meanest,"  Gamaliel,  groping,  said, 
"  That  when  the  angry  people  yesterday 
Bore  thee  headlong  and  menaced  death  to  thee, 
Then  thou  wert  calm  at  heart,  feeling  no  fear  — 
What  else  were  that  than  boasting,  '  I  am  brave,' 
Which  but  such  vaunt  of  it  could  bring  in  doubt?" 

"  Nay,  master,"  Paul  said,  "  braggart  am  I  not, 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  65 

As  justly  thou  hast  signified  no  brave 

Man  can  be  ;  and  the  peace  whereof  I  speak 

Is  not  the  calmness  that  the  brave  man  drinks 

Out  of  the  cup  of  danger  at  his  lips. 

That  also  I  perhaps  have  sometimes  known  ; 

But  this  is  other,  and  a  mystery 

Even  to  myself,  who  only  have,  and  not 

The  secret  of  the  having  understand  - 

Save  that  I  know  it  no  virtue,  but  a  gift 

Renewed  forever  from  the  grace  of  Christ." 

Gamaliel  listened  deeply,  with  shut  eyes ; 
He  listened,  and  kept  silence,  and  then  sighed, 
A  long,  considerate  sigh,  and  unresolved. 
His  struggling  reason  could  not  right  itself; 
It  staggered  like  a  vessel  in  the  sea 
That  cuff  and  buffet  of  the  storm  has  left 
A  hulk,  dismasted,  rudderless,  forlprn, 
Wedged  between  waves  rocking  her  to  and  fro, 
And  threatening  to  engulf  her  in  the  deep; 
So  there  Gamaliel  swayed,  with  surge  on  surge 
Of  thought  and  passion  sweeping  over  him, 
Till  now  he  trembled  on  the  point  to  sink. 
Paul  saw  the  old  man's  state,  and,  pitying  him, 


66  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 

Knew  how  to  shed  a  balm  upon  the  waves. 
With  a  low  voice,  daughter  of  silence,  he 
Slowly  intoned  a  soft,  melodious  psalm  : 

"  '  Not  haughty  is  my  heart,  O  God  the  Lord, 

'  Nor  do  mine  eyes  ambitiously  aspire  ; 

'  In  great  affairs  I  exercise  me  not, 

'  And  not  in  things  too  wonderful  for  me. 

'  Yea,  I  have  stilled  and  quieted  my  soul ; 

1  As  with  its  mother  a  new-weaned  child, 

'  So  is  my  soul  a  weaned  child  with  me. 

'  O  Israel,  hope  thou,  in  Jehovah  hope, 

1  From  this  time  forth  and  even  forevermore ! ' 

The  mood,  all  melting,  of  that  monody  — 
Less  monody,  than  sound  of  sobbing  ceased  — 
Its  cradling  gentle  lullaby  to  pride, 
Went,  subtly  permeant,  through  Gamaliel's  soul, 
And  mastered  it  to  sympathy  of  calm. 
Paul  saw  with  pleasure  this  effect,  and  wished 
The  too  much  shaken  old  man  venerable 
Might  taste  the  soothing  medicine  of  sleep. 
Not  pausing,  he,  with  ever  softer  tone 
Verging  toward  silence,  over  and  over  again 
Crooned  like  a  cradle  melody  that  psalm ; 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  67  - 

Till,  as  that  vexing  spirit  in  Saul  the  king 
Once  yielded  to  young  David's  harping,  so 
Now  even  the  fluttering  of  the  aged  flesh 
Owned  a  strange  power  reverse  to  cancel  it, 
Hid  in  the  vibrant  pulsing  of  Paul's  voice, 
Its  flexures  and  its  cadences,  that  matched 
The  meaning  with  the  music  ;  lulled  to  rest, 
Gamaliel  lightly,  like  an  infant,  slept. 

"Hist!   Haste!"     So  Paul  to  Stephen  signed 

and  said ; 

"  Hence,  and  bring  hither  quickly  bread  and  wine, 
Wherewith  to  cheer  Gamaliel  when  he  wakes ; 
He  sleeps  now,  weary  with  unwonted  thought." 

Shimei  saw  Stephen  from  the  fort  come  out 
And  bear  purveyance  back  of  bread  and  wine  ; 
So,  earlier,  he  had  seen  Gamaliel  pass, 
Led  by  the  hand  of  Stephen,  through  the  gate, 
Presumably  to  visit  Paul  within. 
For  he,  as  ever  when  some  crime  he  teemed, 
Uneasy  till  the  full-accomplished  birth, 
Was  like  the  hungry  hunting  hound  denied 
Access  to  his  wished  prey,  known  to  be  near  — 


68  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

Though  thus  from  touch,  as  too  from  sight,  with 
drawn, 

And  only  by  the  teased  nostril  snuffed  — 
Who  cannot  cease  from  patient  jealous  watch, 
On  haunches  sitting,  or  on  belly  prone, 
Lest  somehow  yet  he  miss  his  taste  of  blood  — 
So  that  ill  spirit  all  day  had  scented  Paul, 
Shut  up  within  the  castle  out  of  reach, 
And  sedulously  studied,  at  remove, 
Whatever  might  be  token  of  attempt, 
Other's  or  his,  the  morrow's  doom  to  cheat. 
The  very  thought,  '  Should  he  slip  through  our 

hands ! ' 

Was  anguish,  like  a  goad,  to  Shimei, 
Who  now  was  sure  he  had  the  hope  divined 
That  Paul  was  harboring — an  escape  by  night! 
'  Paul,  in  the  darkness,  stealing  out  disguised 
As  old  Gamaliel,  would,  with  meat  and  drink 
Supplied  him,  safety  seek  in  distant  flight.' 
Filled  with  such  thought,  the  tireless  crafty  Jew, 
Colluding  with  the  sentry  at  the  gate, 
There  sat  him  down  the  sentry's  watch  to  share ; 
Paul  should  by  no  such  stratagem  avoid 
The  vengeance  that  next  morrow  waited  him. 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  69 

But  Paul  and  Stephen,  guileless,  of  the  guile 
Imputed  dreamed  not ;  they  with  happy  thought 
Contented  them  until  Gamaliel  woke. 
Then  when  Gamaliel  woke,  they  gave  him  wine, 
Pure  from  the  grape,  so  much  as  heartened  him, 
And  bread  that  strengthened  him,  from  fasting  faint. 
Discourse  then  followed,  eased  with  many  a  change 
From  theme  to  theme,  from  mood  to  mood  diverse, 
Until  the  long  daylight  was  waned  away, 
And  twilight  deepened  round  them  talking  still. 

Gamaliel,  in  whatever  various  vein 
Of  converse  with  his  outward  mind  employed, 
Was  ever,  in  his  deeper  inward  mind, 
Resistlessly  drawn  backward  to  the  doubt, 
The  question,  the  perplexity,  the  fear, 
'Saul  —  is  he  right?     And  is  Gamaliel  wrong? 
And  have  I  missed  to  know  the  Christ  of  God?' 
He  gazed  abstractedly  on  Paul,  beheld 
So  different ;  less  in  outer  aspect  changed  — 
Although  therein,  too,  other  —  than  in  act, 
In  gesture  and  in  attitude  of  soul, 
The  spirit  and  the  motive  of  the  man, 
Transfigured  from  the  pride  that  once  was  Saul. 


70  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

"  I  do  not  know  thee,  Saul,"  at  length  he  said  ; 
"  Nay,  nay,  not  Saul  —  I  should  not  call  him  Saul, 
This  is  some  different  man  from  him  I  knew, 
In  other  years  long  gone,  and  called  him  Saul  ! 
Such  difference  in  the  same  the  sameness  makes 
Impossible.     Impossible,  but  that 
The  sameness  still  in  difference  survives 
Persistently.     The  impossible  itself 
I  must  believe  —  when  I  behold  it." 

"Yea," 

Paul  said,  "  and  more,  the  impossible  become, 
When  God  so  wills  it ;  as  for  me  He  willed ! 
My  life  these  many  years,  my  self,  has  been 
One  contradiction  of  the  possible. 
The  reconcilement  of  all  things  in  Christ 
Is  God  the  Blessed's  purpose  and  decree. 
For  God  delights  in  the  impossible." 

Gamaliel  did  not  heed,  but  murmuring  spoke, 
In  absent  deep  communion  with  himself: 
"  Saul,    Paul,  the   same    still,    and    so    changed,  so 

changed ! 

And  cause  of  change  none  other  than  that  stroke, 
That  lightning-stroke  he  tells  of,  launched  on  him 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  jl 

From  out  a  cloudless  sky  at  blazing  noon  ! 

Whence,  and  what  was  it,  that  stupendous  blow ! 

Would  He  have  lied  Who  flashed  it  blinding  down? 

Or  suffered  any  liar  to  claim  it  his? 

And  the  dread  Voice  made  answer:  '  It  is  I, 

Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  Crucified.' 

Lo,  my  whole  head  is  sick,  my  whole  heart  faint, 

Turned  dizzy  with  the  whirl  of  many  thoughts  - 

Thoughts  many,  and  too  violently  strange, 

For  a  worn-weary  aged  mind  like  mine ! 

I  feel  I  am  too  feeble  to  abide 

Much  longer  all  this  tumult  of  my  heart ; 

I  shall  myself  cease,  if  it  does  not  cease. 

And  peradventure  cease  it  would,  could  I 

Stop  striving,  and  give  up  to  be  a  child. 

A  child  once  more !     Ah,  that  in  truth  were  sweet,  f 

To  find  some  bosom  like  a  mother's,  where 

I  might  lay  down  my  aching  head  to  rest, 

This  head,  so  hoar,  the  foolish  think  so  wise ! 

Old,  but  not  wise,  not  wise  indeed  though  old  ; 

In  weakness  —  would  it  were  in  meekness  too!  — 

A  child,  leaning,  with  none  to  lean  upon  - 

Such  is  Gamaliel  in  his  hoary  age !  " 


72  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 

Besides  his  words,  the  old  man's  yearning  look 
Bore  witness  to  the  trouble  of  his  mind. 
-paul  spoke  —  so  gently  that  the  sense  he  gave 
Seemed  to  Gamaliel  almost  his  own  thought : 
"•'Come  unto  Me,'  Messiah  Jesus  said, 
'  Come  unto  Me/  as  Who  had  right,  said,  'ye 
That  labor  and  are  heavy-laden,  all, 
Come  unto  Me  and  I  will  give  you  rest. 
My  yoke  upon  you  take,  and  learn  of  Me  ; 
For  meek  am  I  in  heart,  and  lowly;  so 
Shall  ye  find  rest  unto  your  souls." 

From  Paul 

No  more  ;  for,  all  as  if  he  naught  had  heard, 
But  only  was  remembering  what  he  heard, 
Gamaliel  went  on  musing  audibly  : 
'  Rest ' — comfortable  word  !     But  he  was  young 
That  spake  thus,  young,  and  in  the  law  unlearned ; 
And  of  a  yoke  spake  he,  '  My  yoke/  he  said. 
Surely  I  am  too  old  to  go  to  school, 
Too  reverend-old,  my  neck  so  late  to  bend, 
A  sign  to  all  the  people  —  stooped  to  take 
Meekly  that  youngster  Galilaean's  yoke! 
Beware,  beware !     I  tremBle  at  the  words 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  73 

I  speak.     I  feel  the  dreadful  presence  here, 
More  dreadful,  of  the  power  that  shook  me  so, 

When  those  apostles  of  the  Nazarene  i 

/ 

Stood  up  before  our  council  to  be  judged. 

If  I  should  now,  this  last  time,  err  through  pride!-" 

The  murmur  of  Gamaliel's  musing  ceased; 
But  ceased  not  the  strong  crying  without  words 
In  Paul's  heart  for  his  master  so  bestead. 
The  solemn  silence  of  that  prison  cell, 
Less  broken  than  accented  by  the  tread 
Monotonous  and  measured  heard  without 
Of  the  dull  sentry  pacing  to  and  fro 
His  beat  along  the  way  before  the  door 
More  like  mechanic  pendulum  than  man  ; 
The  darkness  of  the  place  now  utter,  night 
Full  come,  no  lamp  ;  the  awe,  the  dread  suspense 
Unspeakable  of  such  an  issue  poised, 
Eternity  in  doubtful  balance  there 
A-tremble  on  a  razor-edge  of  time- 
This  even  on  Stephen's  bright  young  spirit  cast 
As  if  a  shadow  from  the  world  to  come ; 
He  parted  with  it  after  nevermore 
The  vivid  certainty,  that  moment  seized, 


74  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  II. 

Of  an  Unseen,  more  real,  beyond  the  Seen. 

But  presently  Gamaliel  yet  again 
Mused  audibly  in  murmur  as  before : 
"  I  fear  me  I  shall  fail,  and  not  let  go 
Betimes  the  hold  I  have,  the  hold  has  me, 
Say  rather,  this  fierce  hold  upon  myself 
And  mine  own  righteousness  so  dearly  earned, 
To  take  the  fall  proposed,  the  shuddering  fall, 
Through  emptiness  and  that  waste  waiting  deep 
Of  nothing  under  me,  in  hope  to  reach 
At  last  —  what  rescue,  or  what  landing-place? 
Rest  in  the  arms  once  pinioned  to  the  cross! 
He  draws  me  with  His  heavenly-uttered  '  Come  ' ! 
This  is  God's  voice;  God's  voice  I  must  obey  — 
Yea,  Lord,  thy  servant  heareth,  and  I  come. 
I  say  it,  but  I  do  it  not.     Too  late  ? 
What  if  at  last  I  prove  to  hold  too  hard 
Upon  myself,  and  not  undo  my  hand, 
Grown  stiff  with  holding  long,  until  too  late ! 
These  are  my  last  heart-beats,  and  with  the  last, 
The  very  last,  what  would  I  do  ?  Resist  ? 
Resist,  or  yield  ?  Oh,  not  resist,  but  yield ; 
Lord,  help  me  not  resist,  but  yield,  but  yield — " 


Book  II.  PAUL  AND  GAMALIEL.  jrc 

The  faltering  utterance  failed,  suspended ;  then, 
To  a  new  key  transposed,  went  faltering  on  : 

"This  peace  within  my  breast,  the  peace  of  God! 
Jesus,  Thou  Son  of  Blessed  God  Most  High, 
I  know  Thee  by  the  token  of  Thy  peace ! 
Thine  is  this  peace,  not  given  as  by  the  world. 
Thou  wast  beforehand  with  Thy  servant ;  I 
Had  not  known  Thee,  hadst  Thou  not  first  known 

me, 

And  hastened  to  be  gracious,  ere  I  died. 
Thou  art  most  gracious,  and  I  worship  Thee. 
What  was  it  Simeon  said?  —  'Now  lettest  Thou 
Thy  servant  hence  depart  in  peace,'  for  I  - 
In  peace,  in  peace,  even  I  —  yea,  for  mine  eyes, 
Mine  also,  most  unworthy,  have  beheld 
The  light  of  Thy  salvation,  O  my  God  ! 
Oh,  peace  ineffable  !     It  seems  to  steal 
Through  all  my  members  and  dispose  to  rest. 
I  think  that  I  will  sleep ;  I  am  at  peace. 
My  heart  has  quieted  itself,  peace,  peace — " 

The  words  died  into  silence  audible ; 
Soft,  like  a  wavelet  sinking,  ceased  his  breath, 
And  there  Gamaliel  lay,  a  breathless  peace. 


76 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  II. 


Paul  joyful,  knowing  that  his  aged  friend 
Had  found  peace  in  believing,  did  not  dream 
That  it  had  been  the  last  of  life  for  him, 
The  first  of  life  indeed,  Paul  would  have  deemed  ; 
But  thinking,  '  He  has  fallen  asleep  once  more,' 
Gave  silent  thanks  to  God  and  himself  slept, 
With  Stephen  then  already  safe  asleep. 

When,  with  the  earliest  dawn,  four  elders  came, 
Gamaliel's  equals,  to  Antonia, 
In  reverent  wise  to  bear  him  thence  away, 
They  found  the  many-wrinkled  brow  that  was, 
Smoothed  out  most  placid  fair,  and  on  the  cheek 
A  bloomy  heavenly  hue,  as  if  of  youth 
Revived,  or  immortality  begun. 

But  Paul  and  Stephen,  summoned  to  depart, 
The  sleeper's  sleep  were  minded  not  to  break; 
There  in  the  dead  and  middle  of  the  night, 
They  knelt  to  kiss  the  forehead  in  farewell, 
And  were  surprised  to  feel  the  touch  was  cold. 


BOOK     III. 
SHIMEI    AND    THE    CHILIARCH 


PAUL,  accompanied  by  young  Stephen,  is  started  at  about 
midnight,  under  strong  military  escort,  for  Caesarea.  At  the 
gate  of  the  castle,  Shimei,  lurking  there,  is  arrested,  and 
brought  before  the  chiliarch,  Claudius  Lysias  by  name.  A 
conversation  ensues,  in  which  Shimei,  for  a  time  with  some 
success,  practises  on  the  chiliarch  his  characteristic  arts  of 
deception.  At  last,  the  chiliarch,  denouncing  him  for  what 
he  is,  and  putting  him  under  heavy  bonds  to  respond  in  per 
son,  whenever  and  wherever  afterward  commanded  by  the 
Roman  authorities,  dismisses  him  from  presence,  chagrined 
and  dismayed. 


SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILIARCH. 

Ere  midnight,  had  reveille  to  those  twain 
Sounded,  and  from  brief  slumber  rallied  them. 
They  passed  from  the  surprise  of  that  farewell 
Kissed  on  the  coolness  of  Gamaliel's  brow- 
He  his  reveille  waiting  from  the  trump 
Of  resurrection,  tranced  in  happy  sleep  !  — 
From  this  passed  Paul  and  Stephen  to  the  court 
Without,  where  stood,  made  ready  in  array, 
Five  hundred  Roman  soldiers,  foot  and  horse, 
Filling  the  place  with  frequence  and  ferment. 
Armed  men,  and  horses  in  caparison, 
And  saddled  asses  thick  together  poured  — 
All  was  alive  with  motion  and  with  sound. 
There  was  the  stamping  hoof  of  restless  steed, 
The  rattling  bridle-rein,  the  bridle-bit 
Champed  hoary,  the  impatient  toss  of  head 
Shaking  the  mane  disheveled,  and  with  foam 
Flecking  the  breast,  the  shoulder,  and  the  flank, 
Eruptive  snort  from  nostril  and  from  lip, 
The  ass's  long  and  melancholy  bray, 


80  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Horse's  salute  of  recognition  neighed 
To  greet  some  fellow  welcomed  in  the  throng, 
Therewith,  voices  of  men,  scuffle  of  feet  — 
All  under  bickering  light  and  shadow  flung 
From  torches,  fixed  or  moving,  fume  and  flame. 

To  Paul  and  Stephen  sharp  the  contrast  was 
Between  that  quietude  and  this  turmoil, 
Sleeping  Gamaliel  and  these  urgent  men  ! 
But  Paul  his  peace  held  fast  amid  it  all, 
Peace,  yet  a  posture  girded  and  alert ; 
While  Stephen,  hanging  on  his  uncle's  eye, 
Caught  the  contagion  of  that  heedful  calm. 

The  natural  pathos  of  one  fond  regret 
Ached  in  the  heart  of  Paul,  a  hoarded  pain  — 
His  wish,  denied  him,  to  have  given  in  charge, 
Before  he  went,  Gamaliel's  lifeless  form, 
If  to  the  keeping  of  his  kindred  not, 
At  least  to  Roman  care  and  piety  ; 
Amid  the  hurly-burly  of  the  hour, 
No  chance  of  speech,  with  any  that  would  heed, 
For  Jewish  prisoner  hurried  thence  by  night ! 
But  Paul's  revered  friend,  safe  fallen  asleep 
In  Jesus,  beyond  care  or  want  was  blest; 


Book  III.    SHIM  El  AND  THE  CHI  LI  ARCH.  gl 

Yea,  and  the  human  reverence  of  great  death, 

Toward  one  in  death  so  reverend  great  as  he, 

Well  might  be  trusted,  for  such  clay  to  win, 

Through  kindred  care,  the  sepulture  most  meet. 

Yet  Paul,  come  to  Antipatris,  and  there 

Left  with  the  horsemen  only  thence  to  ride, 

A  needless  careful  message  touching  this 

Gave  to  the  chief  of  the  returning  foot. 

When  to  the  chiliarch's  ear  such  word  was  brought, 

That  captain  deeply  mused  it  in  his  mind- 

To  find  it  throw  a  most  unlooked-for  light 

On  certain  dark  alternatives  of  doubt 

That  had  meanwhile  his  judgment  sore  perplexed. 

Lowly  upon  an  ass  they  seated  Paul, 
And  Stephen,  likewise  mounted,  ranged  beside. 
Then  those  appointed  to  prick  forth  before, 
Out  through  Uie  two-leaved  gate  at  sign  withdrawn, 
Were  issuing  on  the  street  in  order  due, 
\Vhen  the  proud  prudent  steed  that  led  the  way 
Swerved,  and,  with  mighty  surge  of  rash  recoil, 
Had  nigh  his  rider  from  the  saddle  thrown. 
He,  his  fine  nostril  wide  distended,  snuffed 
Suspicion  on  the  tainted  wind,  and,  dazed 


82  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL,  Book  III. 

His  eyes  with  darkness  from  the  glare  just  left 
Of  torchlight  in  the  court,  uncertain  saw, 
To  the  right  hand  beside  the  open  port, 
There  on  the  ground,  as  ambushed  at  his  feet. 
A  motion,  or  a  shadow,  or  a  shape, 
Which  to  his  careful  mind  portended  ill. 

"  Halt !  "  rang  abrupt  the  startling  stern  command  ; 
"  Seize  him  !  "  the  leader  of  the  vanguard  cried, 
And  pointed  to  the  skulking  figure  near. 
Darted  three  soldiers  from  the  rank  of  foot, 
With  instant  light  celerity — a  flash 
Of  movement  from  the  serried  column  sent 
Inerrant  to  its  aim,  like  lever-arm 
Of  long  bright  steel  by  some  machine  flung  forth 
To  do  prehensile  office  and  fetch  home  — 
Darted  upon  the  man  in  hiding  there, 
And  brought  him  prisoner  to  the  chiliarch. 

"  Knowest  thou  this  man  ?"  the  chiliarch  asked  of 

Paul. 

"  Shimei  his  name,  an  elder  of  the  Jews," 
Responded  Paul ;  turning,  the  chiliarch  then 
Said:  "Thou  —  Stephen,   I   think  they  call  thee  — 

speak. 


Book  III.    SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILIARC11.  83 

Thou  toldst  me  yesterday,  not  naming  him, 

Of  one  all-capable  of  crime,  the  head 

And  chief  of  a  conspiracy  to  slay  ; 

Answer  —  thou  needst  not  fear  —  is  this  the  man?" 

Stephen  flushed  shame;    "The  same,  my  lord,"  he 

said  ; 
He  dropped  therewith  his  eyes,  and  head  declined. 

"Thou  stayest,"  the  chiliarch  said  to  Shimei ; 
"  On,  and  with  speed  ! "  he  to  the  soldiers  said. 
To  a  centurion,  then,  attending  him  : 
"  Relieve  the  sentry  set  outside  the  port, 
And  hither  bid  the  man  released  to  me." 

"  What  wast  thou  doing  at  thy  sentry-post, 
That  miscreant  such  as  this  should  sit  him  there 
Unchallenged?   Sleeping?  Soothed  perhaps  to  sleep 
With  chink  of  gold  sweet-shaken  in  thine  ear  ?  "- 
A  perilous  frown  dark  on  his  imminent  brow, 
The  chiliarch  thus  bespoke  the  sentinel. 
But  with  full  steady  eye,  the  man  replied  : 
"  I  crave  thy  pardon,  if,  through  ignorance 
I  erred,  but  I  nowise  forgot  myself, 
Or  failed  my  duty  of  strict  challenging. 
Indeed,  sir,  if  the  man  in  presence  be 


84  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Aught  but  a  loyal,  honest  gentleman, 
Then  am  I  much  deceived,  and  punish  me  ; 
But  not  for  slackness  or  base  traitorhood. 
As  I  my  oath  and  office  understand, 
I  was  true  soldier  and  true  sentinel." 

'Sound  heart,  if  addle  head/  the  chiliarch  thought, 
"  Thy  oath  and  office,  my  good  sentinel  — 
Thou  needest  to  understand  them  better,"  said. 

The  sentry,  fain  to  clear  himself,  began  : 
"He  told  me"  — 

"  Doubtless  some  amusing  tale/' 
Smiling  an  easy  scorn,  the  chiliarch  said. 

Surging  with  zeal  and  conscious  honesty, 
The  sentinel  again  his  part  essayed : 
"  He  said,  sir  " — 

"  Aye,  I  warrant  thee  he  did, 
If  but  thou  hearkenedst/'  said  the  chiliarch  ; 
"  Tongue  seldom  lacks,  let  ear  be  freely  lent. 
Sharp  question  and  short  answer,  there  an  end  — 
That  is  the  wisdom  for  the  man  on  watch. 


Book  III.    SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILIARCH.  85 

Words  are  a  master  snare,  beware  of  words, 

Thine  own  or  other's,  either  equal  fear ; 

No  parley,  is  the  sentinel's  safe  rule. 

Whet  up  thy  wits,  my  man,  but  this  time  — go !  " 

The  sentry  thus  dismissed,  retiring,  shot 
Into  the  chiliarch's  ear  a  Parthian  word : 
"  Beseech  thee,  sir,  prejudge  nor  him,  nor  me  ; 
Wait  till  thou  hear  the  gentleman  explain." 

"  Thou  hast  bewitched  him  well,"  to  Shimei 
Turning,  the  chiliarch  said ;  then,  with  cold  eye 
Regarding  and  repelling  him,  exclaimed 
"  Hoar  head,  thou  lookest  every  inch  a  rogue  !  " 

Shimei  had  marked  with  a  considering  mind 
The  chiliarch's  manner  with  the  sentinel ; 
In  dilatory  parry,  he  replied  : 
"  Not  what  we  look,  but  what  we  are,  we  are." 

"  But  what  we  are,  conforms  at  length  our  looks," 
Surprised,  amused,  in  doubt,  but  dallying,  matched 
The  Roman  his  rejoinder.     Then  the  Jew, 
Adventuring  on  one  more  avoidance,  said  : 
"  Well  dost  thou  say  '  at  length  ';  for  it  might  chance 
That  looks  were  obstinate,  requiring  time." 


86  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

"  Coiner  of  wisdom  into  apothegm  ! 
An  undiscovered  Seneca  in  sooth, 
Where  least  expected,  seems  I  meet  to-night ! 
But  spare  to  bandy  sentences  with  me." 
With  change  to  chilling  dignity  from  sneer, 
The  Roman  so  rebuffed  the  cringing  Jew ; 
Who,  cringing,  yet  was  no  least  whit  abashed, 
But  answered  :  "  Pardon,  sir,  thy  servant,  who 
Has  missed  his  mark  in  his  simplicity. 
I  thought,  '  If  I  might  spare  my  lord  his  time  !' 
And  dutifully  thereto  spared  my  words. 
The  farthest  was  it  from  my  humble  aim 
To  mint  my  silly  thought  in  adages. 
Forgive  me,  if,  unconsciously  set  on 
By  thy  example  of  sententious  speech  — 
True  wisdom  closed  in  fitting  words  and  few  — 
I  seemed  to  match  my  worthless  wit  with  thine, 
I  have  a  helpless  habit  of  the  mind, 
A  trick  of  mimicry  that  masters  me  ; 
When  I  observe  in  them  what  I  admire, 
I  can  not  but  my  betters  imitate. 
I  fear  me  I  have  compromised  my  cause  ; 
Had  I  been  deeper,  I  had  less  seemed  deep  ! 
I  lack  the  art  to  show  the  artless  man 


Book  III.     SHIMEI  AND   THE  CHILIARCH.  87 

That  in  my  own  true  self,  sir,  thou  shouldst  see. 

With  my  superiors,  I  am  not  myself; 

I  take  on  airs,  or  seem  to,  copying  them. 

Quite  other  am  I  with  my  proper  like  ; 

I  feel  at  home,  and  am  the  man  I  am. 

Ask  that  plain-spoken,  honest  sentinel - 

He  now  was  my  own  sort,  I  never  thought 

To  strain  myself  above  my  natural  mark 

With  him  ;  we  were  hail  fellows,  he  and  I, 

And  talked  the  harmless  wise  that  such  know  how. 

With  thee  —  oh,  sir,  myself  I  quite  forsook, 

And  slipped  into  a  different  Shimei. 

Pity  my  weakness,  I  am  sick  of  it ; 

To  ape  the  great  is  folly  for  the  small - 

But  small  may  hope  forgiveness  from  the  great!" 

The  chiliarch  listened,  unconvinced  ;  yet  charmed, 
Like  the  bird  gazing  by  the  serpent  charmed. 
"  Pretend  that  I  am  of  thy  kind,"  said  he, 
"And  show  me  how  thou  with  the  sentry  talkedst." 

Now  Lysias  nursed  a  proudly  Roman  mind 
Disdainful  of  all  nations  save  his  own  — 
Disdainfully  a  Roman  but  the  more, 
That  he  by  purchase,  not  by  birth,  was  such ; 


88  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL,  Book  III. 

The  nation  that  he  ruled  he  most  disdained. 

Child  of  the  high-bred  fashion  of  his  time, 

By  choice  and  culture  he  a  skeptic  was. 

Skeptic,  he  yet  was  superstitious  too, 

Open  and  weak  to  supernatural  fears ; 

He  easily  believed  in  magic  powers, 

Charms,  sorceries,  witchcrafts,  incantations,  spells, 

And  all  the  weird  pretensions  of  the  East. 

His  habit  of  disdain  and  skepticism 

Made  him  a  cynic  in  his  views  of  men ; 

Whereby  he  oft,  wise-seeming,  was  unwise. 

He  took  upon  himself  laconic  airs 

In  speech,  in  action  airs  abrupt,  as  who 

Bold  was,  and  strong,  and  from  reflection  deep  — 

The  manner,  rather  than  the  matter,  his. 

To  any  chance  observer  of  his  ways 

In  use  of  office  and  position,  these 

Could  but  have  seemed  comportable  and  fair. 

Accesses  too  of  gentleness  he  had, 

Wherein  a  strain  of  kindly  in  the  man 

Opened  and  gushed  in  flow  affectionate, 

Or  well-becoming  courtesy  and  grace. 

This  Roman  chiliarch,  Claudius  Lysias,  now 


Book  III.    SHIM  El  AND  THE  CHI  LI  ARC  II.  89 

Found  himself  much  at  leisure  and  at  ease, 
Rid  of  that  worrying  case  of  prisoner  strange  ; 
Unconscious  satisfaction  with  himself 
Warmed  at  his  heart,  a  pleasurable  glow- 
He  had  so  neatly  got  it  off  his  hands ! 
He  was  quite  ready,  mind  acquitted  thus, 
Heart  buoyant,  to  disport  himself.      He  saw 
That  in  the  man  before  him  he  had  met 
No  dull  mere  mediocrity,  but  one 
Who,  besides  being  ruler  of  the  Jews, 
As  Paul  pronounced  him,  had  a  quality, 
An  individual  difference,  all  his  own. 
Claudius  might  test  this  man,  get  him  to  talk  — 
An  interesting  study,  learn  his  make. 
Besides  the  pleasure  to  his  appetite 
For  piquant  knowledge  of  his  fellow-man, 
It  might  in  some  way,  indirect  the  better, 
Give  him  a  point  or  two  of  policy 
To  guide  the  conduct  of  his  rulership 
Among  a  people  difficult  to  rule. 
In  such  mood,  idle,  curious,  partly  wise, 
This  half-wise  man,  unwise  through  cynicism, 
Gave  himself  leave  to  say  to  Shimei : 
"Pretend  that  I  am  of  thy  kind,  like  him, 


go  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Let  me  hear  how  thou  with  the  sentry  talked." 

Hardly  could  Shimei,  through  the  mask  he  wore 
Of  feigned  simplicity,  help  leering  out, 
Confessed  the  n^ocker  that  he  ever  was, 
In  that  sardonic  grin,  as  he  replied  : 
"  Pretense,  of  whatso  sort,  be  far  from  me  — 
Save  when  my  betters  wish  it  of  me ;  then, 
I  think  it  right  to  put  my  conscience  by  ; 
Or  rather  place  it  at  their  service  —  that, 
The  dearest  thing  the  poor  good  man  can  claim ! 
I  reason  in  this  way,  '  Why  should  I  presume 
To  scruple,  where  those  wiser  far  than  I 
Are  clear  ? '  That  sure  would  be  the  worst  pretense  — 
Pretending  to  be  holier  than  the  saints. 
My  will,  thou  seest,  is  tractable  enough ; 
But  how,  with  thee,  to  feel  sufficient  ease 
To  do  what  thou  desirest,  go  right  on 
And  talk  and  chatter  as  we  simple  did  ! 

"  First,  then,  perhaps  I  said  :  '  This  is  dull  work ' — 
And  no  offense  to  thee,  sir,  that  I  said  it  — 
1  Dull  work,'  said  I,  'to  stand,  or  pace,  and  watch, 
Long  hours  alone,  and  nothing  like  to  happen 


Book  in.   s///.\r/-:r  AND  THE  CHILIARCII.  9I 

That   makes   it   needful  thou   shouldst  thus  keep 

watch  ! ' 

'  Aye,'  grunted  he  ;   I  thought  him  stupid  like, 
Hut  I  had  something  I  could  tell  him  then 
That  might  rub  up  his  wits  and  brighten  them. 
'  There  is  a  plot,'  said  I.      '  Aye,  plots  enough,' 
Said  he.   'And  something  thou  shouldst  know,'  I  said. 
'  I  doubt,'  said  he;  and  added  :  '  Soldiers  should 
Know  nothing  but  their  duty,  how  to  watch, 
March,  dig,  fight,  slay,  be  slain,  and  no  word  speak. 
Thou  hadst  better  go,'  said  he,  like  that,  more  frank 
Than  courteous,  thou  mightst  think  —  he  meant  no 

harm, 

But  only  like  a  loyal  soldier  spoke. 
I  did  not  go,  but  said  :  '  The  plot  I  mean 
Is  of  escape  from  prison.'      But  he  replied  : 
*  Nobody  can  escape  these  times  from  prison  ; 
The  emperor  has  a  hundred  million  eyes, 
That  never  wink,  because  they  have  no  lids, 
And  never  sleep,  because  they  never  tire, 
And  these  run  everywhere  and  all  things  see ; 
The  emperor's  arms  are  many,  long  and  strong, 
East,  west,  north,  south,  they  range  throughout  the 

world. 


92  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  III. 

Oh,  he  can  reach  thee  wheresoever  hiding, 

And  pluck  thee  thence  and  fetch  thee  safely  home ; 

The  world  is  all  his  prison,  the  emperor's.' 

'  Thou  thinkest  that?'  said  I.      '  No  doubt,'  said  he. 

'  But  captives  still,'  said  I,  'might  try  to  escape?' 

'Oh,  aye,'  said  he,  'that  is  quite  natural.' 

'And  should  they  try,'  I  said,  'with  thee  on  watch, 

And  should  they  somehow  skill  to  get  by  thee, 

Then  —  and  although  they  be  thereafter  caught  — 

How  fares  it  then  with  thee?'  said  I  to  him  — 

'Yea,  how  with  thee  that  lettest  them  go  by?' 

'Then  there  would  be,'  he  said,  'account  to  give, 

And  I  should  wish  I  had  not  been  on  watch.' 

'  Nay,  better  wish,  man,  thou  hadst  better  watched,' 

Said  I,  'and  thyself  caught  the  fugitive.' 

'Aye,  that  were  something  better  yet,'  said  he. 

'Why,  yea,'  said  I,  'that,  laid  to  thy  account, 

Might  win  thee  prompt  promotion  out  of  this.' 

'  I  never  dream,'  said  he,  '  of  anything 

To  lift  me  from  the  common  soldier's  lot.' 

'Dreaming  is  idle,  yea,'  said  I  to  him, 

'  But  waking  thought  and  action  need  not  be. 

For  instance,  now,'  I  then  went  on  and  said" — 


Book  III.    SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILIARCH.  93 

The  subtle  Hebrew,  drawing  out  his  tale, 
Mock-artless  long,  of  gossip  with  the  watch, 
Had  never  intermitted  an  intent, 
Considerate,  sly,  solicitous  regard 
Fixed  on  the  chiliarch's  face,  therein  to  read 
The  reflex  of  the  phases  of  his  thought ; 
And  now  he  marked  with  pleasure  how  their  mere 
Indifferent  or  incredulous  cold  scorn 
Was  fading  from  the  haughty  Roman's  eyes, 
Merged  in  a  dawn  of  curious  interest. 
Disguisedly,  but  confidently,  glad- 
His  course  seen  smooth  before  him  to  his  goal  — 
Shimei  thence  eased  that  tension  of  the  will 
To  simulate  simplicity  of  speech, 
As,  more  directly,  his  ambages  spared, 
He  almost  blithely,  in  his  natural  vein 
Of  fondness  for  the  false  and  the  malign, 
Slid  on,  in  fabrication  of  report, 
Or  in  report  of  fabrication,  thus: 
"Inside  those  castle  walls  there  is  a  man, 
A  Jew,  one  Paul,  I  know  him  very  well, 
Prisoner  for  crime  that  richly  merits  death. 
The  outraged  people  yesterday  were  fain 
To  wait  no  longer,  but  at  once  inflict, 


94 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 


Themselves,  with  righteous  hands,  the  penalty. 

The  gentle  chiliarch  rescued  him  from  them, 

Not  knowing,  as  of  course  how  could  he  know? 

What  a  base  wretch  he  plucked  from  doom  condign. 

So  here  Paul  is  in  Roman  custody, 

Safe  for  the  moment,  but  full  well  aware, 

As  he  deserves  to  die,  that  die  he  will, 

Whenever  once  he  shall  be  justly  judged. 

He  therefore  schemes  it  to  attempt  escape, 

This  very  night,  from  his  imprisonment. 

He  has  his  tool,  tool  and  accomplice  both, 

In  that  young  fellow  thou  hast  seen  pass  by, 

Entering  and  issuing  through  the  castle-gate. 

'Aye,  I  have  seen  him  plying  back  and  forth,' 

The  sentry  said,  'a  likely  Hebrew  lad; 

I  challenged  him,  but  he  had  documents. 

Wicked,  ungrateful !  —  that  good  chiliarch 

Had  shown  such  grace  to  him  for  his  fair  looks.' 

'Well,  I  will  stay,'  said  I,  'and  watch  with  thee, 

And  help  thee  foil  their  game,  and  thy  chance  mend. 

But  let  us  have  two  stout  young  fellows  ready, 

I  can  provide  them,  hidden  nigh  at  hand  — 

No  call  for  us  to  spend  our  breath  in  running!  — 

To  give  the  prisoner  chase,  should  need  arise. 


Book  III.    SHIMEI  AND  THR  CHILIARC1L  95 

Arise  it  will  not,  if  my  guess  is  right, 

And  I  know  Paul  so  well,  I  scarce  can  miss. 

Paul  stakes  his  hope  on  craft,  and  not  on  speed ; 

Still,  it  is  good  to  be  at  all  points  armed, 

And  should  craft  fail,  there  will  be  test  of  speed, 

No  doubt  of  that,  since  Paul  would  run  for  life, 

And  life  is  prize  to  make  the  tortoise  fleet. 

Paul  is  no  stiff  decrepit  —  far  from  such  ; 

Old  as  his  look  is,  he  is  light  of  heel. 

Running,  however,  only  last  resort, 

The  desperate  refuge  of  necessity ; 

Paul's  main  reliance  is  on  something  else, 

To  wit,  a  pretty  ruse  and  stratagem. 

A  wary  fellow  Paul,  and  deep  in  wiles!" 

Shimei  was  entered  on  a  mingled  vein 
Of  true  and  false  reflection  of  his  thought, 
Wherein  himself  could  scarce  the  line  have  drawn 
To  part  the  fabrication  from  the  fact. 
Partly,  he  thought  indeed  that  Paul  was  such 
As  he  was  now  describing  him  to  be, 
In  image  and  projection  of  himself; 
Partly,  he  painted  an  ideal  mere, 
Conscious  creation  of  malicious  mind. 


96  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

He  did  uneasily  believe,  or  fear, 

That  Paul  would  somehow  cheat  the  malice  yet 

Of  those  who  hated  him  ;  perhaps  contrive 

Escape  by  night  from  prison.      His  restless  mind, 

Hotbed  of  machination,  equally 

Was  hotbed  of  suspicion  and  surmise. 

His  mere  suspicion  and  surmise  became, 

To  his  imagination,  certainty ; 

Or  else  he  took,  himself,  for  certainty, 

At  length,  what  he  for  certainty  affirmed, 

Swearing  the  false  till  he  believed  it  true. 

He  thus  the  story  of  his  talk  prolonged : 
" '  Now  hark  thee,  friend,  and  hear  me  prophesy/ 
So  to  the  worthy  sentinel  I  said, 
'Thou  sawest  Paul  brought  in,  and  he  was  Paul  — 
Tell  me,  was  not  he  Paul,  when  he  came  in  ? 
Aye,  Paul  he  was,  thou  sayest.     Well,  what  I  say  — 
And  this  now,  mark  it,  is  my  prophecy  — 
Paul  will  come  out,  not  Paul,  but  some  one  else  ; 
In  short,  will  hobble  forth  —  Gamaliel ! 
Gamaliel,  thou  must  know,  I  said  to  him, 
'  Is  the  old  man  that  lad  this  morn  led  in ; 
Making,  forsooth,  a  touching  sight  to  see, 


Book  III.    SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILlARCIL  97 

So  tenderly  and  gingerly  the  lad 

Guided  and  stayed  the  steps  of  that  old  man. 

A  pretty  acted  piece  of  loyalty 

To  venerable  age  from  blooming  youth  ! 

Watch,  thou  shalt  see  it  acted  over  again 

To-night,  with  haply  some  improvement  made 

On  the  rehearsal,  when  he  leads  out  Paul. 

Paul's  hair  and  beard  will  not  need  dusting  white, 

Being  as  white  as  old  Gamaliel's  now ; 

But  edifying  it  will  be  to  mark 

The  careful  studied  totter  of  the  step, 

The  tremble  of  the  hand  upon  his  staff, 

The  thin  and  querulous  quaver  of  the  voice, 

The  helpless  meek  dependence  on  his  guide, 

And  all  the  various  aged  make-believe, 

Wherewith  that  subtle  master  of  deceit, 

That  natural,  practised,  life-long  actor,  Paul, 

Will  put  the  guise  of  old  Gamaliel  on. 

'  He-he  ! '    I  chuckled  to  the  sentinel, 

'  To  me  the  spectacle  will  be  as  good 

And  laugnable,  as  I  should  guess  a  play, 

A  roaring  one,  of  Plautus  were  to  thee !' 

Shimei  was  venturing  to  let  lapse  his  part 


98  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Of  mere  reporter  to  a  talk  supposed 

Betwixt  himself  and  the  dull  sentinel  — 

This  to  let  lapse,  or,  if  not  quite  let  lapse, 

Mix  and  confound  with  his  own  proper  part, 

Inveterate,  unassumed,  of  scoffer  free  ; 

He  saw  the  chiliarch  sink  so  deep  immersed 

In  hearing  and  in  weighing  what  was  said, 

He  deemed  he  might  thenceforward  trust  his  speech, 

With  scant  disguise  of  indirection,  aimed 

As  frankly  for  a  keen  intelligence  — 

The  chiliarch's  own,  and  not  the  sentinel's  — 

To  snare  his  listener's  now  less  warded  wit. 

Paul  was  clean  gone  indeed,  gone  otherwise 

Than  through  the  guile  that  he  had  dared  impute ; 

But  he,  meantime,  would  such  a  chance  not  miss, 

A  golden  chance  that  might  not  come  again, 

To  prepossess  the  chiliarch's  captive  mind 

With  pregnant  ill  surmise  concerning  Paul. 

There  yet  was  unexhausted  circumstance 

Suggestively  at  hand,  seed  that  but  sown 

Would  a  fine  harvest  of  suspicion  spring. 

Point-blank  his  aim  shifted  to  Lysias  now, 
He  said  :  "  Why  did  Gamaliel  stay  so  long? 


Book  III.    SHIMEl  AND  THE  CHILIARCII.  9 

Why,  indeed,  come  at  all,  but,  having  come, 

Why  so  long  tarry,  wearing  out  the  day  ? 

Where  is  Gamaliel  now?     What  did  it  mean 

That  that  officious  Hebrew  youngster  —  he 

Who,  at  Paul's  wish,  Gamaliel  hither  brought, 

Who  back  and  forth  has  flitted  through  the  gate 

All  day,  carrying  and  fetching  as  he  liked  — 

What  did  it  mean,  I  ask,  that  he  bore  in 

Flagons  of  wine  and  loaves  of  bread?  What  mean? 

Why,  this,  provision  got  to  serve  Paul's  need, 

When,  issuing  in  Gamaliel's  vesture,  he 

Should  shuffle  forth,  Gamaliel,  on  the  street, 

To  try  the  fortune  of  a  runaway, 

A  hopeless  runaway  in  Caesar's  world. 

The  clement  chiliarch  never  would  be  hard 

On  an  old  dotard  of  a  hundred  years, 

Found  aider  and  abettor  in  such  wile, 

Where  left  behind  in  ward  to  take  his  chance  ; 

Or,  possibly,  Gamaliel  might  not  know, 

Much  more,  not  share,  the  stratagem  of  Paul. 

It  would  be  easy  to  put  him  to  sleep 

And  strip  him  of  his  raiment,  unawares, 

For  the  exchange,  unbargained-for,  with  Paul. 

Paul  has  much  travelled  everywhere  abroad 


I0o  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

And  freely  commerced  with  all  kinds  of  men. 

He  has  the  skill  of  many  magic  arts, 

The  virtue  knows  of  many  a  mighty  drug ; 

He  can  compound  thee  opiate  drinks  to  drown 

Thy  thought  and  senses  in  oblivion. 

He  could  compose  thee  in  so  deep  a  sleep, 

Fair  like  an  infant's,  that  not  all  the  blare 

Of  all  Rome's  trumpets  loud  together  blown 

Could  rouse  thee  ever  from  that  fixed  sleep. 

A  dangerous  wicked  man  to  wield  such  power!" 

The  chiliarch  stood  suspended  in  fast  gaze 
On  Shimei,  not  perusing  him,  but  lost 
In  various  troubled  and  confounded  thought. 
'  Had  he  indeed  been  tricked  ?  Was  Paul  such 

knave  ? 

Had  that  young  Hebrew,  with  his  innocent 
Bright  look  of  truth  and  faith  and  nobleness, 
Had  he  been  hollow,  false,  base,  treacherous, 
And  played  upon  a  Roman  father's  heart 
To  rid  a  rascal  out  of  custody? 
Gamaliel  —  was  that  reverend-looking  man, 
That  image  of  a  stately-fair  old  age, 
Was  he  a  low  complotter  of  deceit? 


Book  III.    SHIMEI  AND  THE  CHILIARCH. 

Or,  if  not  that,  had  nameless  turpitude 

Abused  such  dignity  into  a  tool, 

Helpless,  unwitting,  of  ignoble  wile?' 

Thought,  question,  doubt,  suspicion,  guess,  surmise, 

Tumbled,  a  chaos,  in  the  chiliarch's  mind. 

Shimei  paused,  watching,  with  delight  intense; 

He  felt  the  chiliarch  fast  ensnared,  his  prey. 

Wary  as  was  his  wit,  and  ill-inclined 
Ever  to  take  a  needless  risk,  or  dip 
His  feet  in  paths  wherein,  once  entered,  he 
Perforce  must  fare  right  forward,  no  retreat  — 
Though  such  in  temper,  such  in  habit,  yet  — 
Either  that  instant  suddenly  resolved 
That  his  true  prudence  was  temerity, 
Or  trusting  his  resourceful  craft  to  pluck 
Desperate  advantage  from  the  jaws  of  chance  — 
Shimei  dared  interrupt  the  Roman's  muse : 
"Will  not  my  lord  the  chiliarch  now  think  well 
To  call  Gamaliel  into  presence  here  ? 
Well  frightened,  the  old  man  perhaps  might  tell 
What  passed  in  his  long  interview  with  Paul, 
Something  to  help  thee  judge  betwixt  us  twain, 
Which  it  were  well  to  credit,  Paul  or  me." 


102  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

The  chiliarch  started  from  his  reverie ; 
"Go  bring  that  Hebrew  ancient  here,"  he  said. 
Then  neither  Jew  nor  Roman  uttered  word, 
Each  busy  with  his  own  unshared  thought, 
Till  the  centurion  from  his  quest  returned, 
Alone,  and  serious,  no  Gamaliel  brought. 
"I  found"    -but  scarcely  the  centurion, 
Faltering,  had  so  essayed  to  make  report, 
When  the  wroth  chiliarch  snatched  the  word  from 

him  : 

"Was  not  he  there?     Did  he  refuse  to  come? 
The  more  loth  he,  the  more  to  be  required  ! 
Gray  hair  will  not  atone  for  stubbornness; 
Thou  shouldst  have  brought  him,  though  by  greater 

force. 

Something  lurks  here  lends  color  to  the  tale 
This  hoar-head  Jew  has  filled  my  ear  withal. 
I  will  Gamaliel  see  and  learn  from  him — " 
"  But,  sir,"  spoke  up  the  loth  centurion, 
"Nothing  from  that  old  Hebrew  wilt  thou  learn, 
For—         "  I  will  hear  no  'fors,'  "  the  chiliarch  said, 
"  But,  hark  thee,  have  the  man  before  me  straight ! " 

Mute,  the  centurion,  left  no  option,  turned, 


Book  III.    SHIM  El  AND  THE  CHI  LI  ARCH.  103 

And,  with  four  soldiers  bidden  follow  him, 
Went  to  the  lodgment  where  Gamaliel  slept. 

Those  five  men,  used  to  death  in  many  forms, 
Yet  in  the  presence  of  such  death  were  awed. 
The  four  in  silence  took  the  sleeper  up, 
Motionless,  with  the  couch  whereon  he  lay, 
And  bore  him,  as  to  honored  burial, 
Into  the  court  beneath  the  starlit  sky, 
And  set  him  down  before  the  chiliarch. 

Like  one  of  those  gray  monuments  in  stone, 
Oft  seen  where  church  or  minster  of  old  days, 
In  secret  vault  or  holy  chapel  dim, 
Gathers  and  wards  its  venerated  dead- 
Marmoreal  image  of  some  man,  supine, 
Deep  sunken,  in  marmoreal  down,  to  sleep, 
Safe  folded  in  marmoreal  robes  from  cold, 
The  meek,  pathetic  face  upturned  to  heaven, 
And  thither-pointing  hands  forever  laid 
Together  on  the  breast,  as  thus  to  pray 
For  the  shriven  spirit  thence  to  judgment  fled- 
So,  stretched  upon  his  couch  amid  the  court, 
White  with  his  age,  yet  purer  white  with  death, 
An  unrebuking,  unrebukable 


104 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 


Reminder  of  the  nothingness  of  time, 
Unheeding  who  beheld  or  what  was  spoke, 
Silent,  and  bringing  silence  touched  with  awe, 
There  in  marmoreal  calm  Gamaliel  lay. 

The  simple  presence  of  the  living  man, 
In  native  majesty  august  with  age, 
Would  have  subdued  who  saw  to  reverence ; 
But  the  ennoblement  and  mystery 
Of  death,  now  added,  wrought  a  mightier  awe, 
And  almost  breathless  made  the  hush  wherein 
The  chiliarch  for  the  moment  from  the  spell 
Of  Shimei's  woven  words  was  quite  set  free, 
Seeing  things  true  by  his  simplicity. 
Breaking  that  hush,  while  never  once  his  gaze 
Unfixing  from  the  features  of  the  dead, 
"Thou  shouldst  have  told  me  this,"  said  Lysias 
To  the  centurion,  gently  chiding  him. 
But  the  centurion  understood  aright 
That  his  superior's  words  were  less  as  blame 
Than  as  atonement  meant  for  fault  his  own 
In  that  his  late  too  peremptory  air  — 
This  the  subaltern  knew,  and  answered  not. 

Shimei,  alone  not  capable  of  awe, 


Book  III.    SHIMRI  AND  THE  CHILIARCH. 


105 


Coolly  had  used  the  interval  of  pause, 

To  take  the  altered  situation  in, 

And  to  his  own  advantage  fit  his  part. 

Two  points  of  promise  to  his  profit  he 

Saw,  and  at  once  to  seize  them  shaped  his  course  : 

First,  to  release  himself  from  duress  there, 

And,  further,  still  to  sow  the  chiliarch's  mind 

With  seed  of  foul  suspicion  against  Paul. 

"Gamaliel  mute,"  said  he  to  Lysias, 

"  Might,  peradventure,  if  but  understood, 

Even  better  witness  to  thy  purpose  prove 

Than  should  he  waken  from  his  swoon  to  speak." 

The  sleight  of  tone  with  which  was  uttered 

"swoon " — 

No  emphasis,  insinuation  all, 
Subtle  suggestion,  naught  to  be  gainsaid, 
Since  naught  was  really  said,  however  much 
Without  the  saying  got  itself  conveyed  — 
This  well  subserved  the  wish  of  Shimei. 
For,  like  a  sovereign  solvent,  that,  with  soft 
Assiduous  chemistry  insensible, 
Some  solid  to  a  fluid  form  breaks  down, 
There  stole  from  Shimei's  speech  an  influence  in, 


106  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Which,  by  degrees  not  slow,  dissolved  the  charm 

Shed  from  the  solemn  spectacle  of  death 

Upon  the  chiliarch's  mind  ;  his  childlike  mood 

Vanished,  his  simple  wise  credulity ! 

Lysias  reverted  to  his  cynicism, 

And,  unawares  lured  on  by  Shimei, 

Followed  false  lights  to  a  conclusion  vain. 

Once  more  he  overweenecl  to  be  astute, 

And,  with  astuteness  recommencing,  fell 

From  the  brief  wisdom  reverence  brief  had  brought; 

o 

His  faith  in  human  virtue  undermined, 

He  doubted  and  believed  exactly  wrong; 

There  where  he  ought  to  have  believed,  he  doubted, 

And  where  he  should  have  doubted,  there  believed  — 

The  captor  fallen  into  the  captive's  snare. 

Lysias  resumed  to  do  what  Shimei  wished ; 

The  tissue  of  sophistication  set 

Already  well  aweaving  in  the  loom 

Of  fancy  and  false  reason  and  unfaith, 

Which  had  before  been  humming  in  his  brain — - 

This  to  piece  out,  and  make  a  finished  web. 

"  '  Swoon,'  sayest  thou  ?  "  To  Shimei,  Lysias  thus ; 
"  That  is  not  death,  thou  thinkest,  but  a  swoon?*' 


Book  III.    SHIM  El  AND  THE  CHI  LI  ARCH.  IO; 

"  It  looks  indeed  like  death,"  the  crafty  Jew 
Responded;  "yea,  it  looks  like  death  indeed. 
It  was  not  meant,  but  death  it  sure  must  be." 

"What  wilt  thou  say?"  said  Lysias.     '"Was  not 

meant  !'- 
Thy  words  conceal  thy  meaning;  speak  it  out." 

"Why,  sir,  I  have  no  meaning  to  conceal," 
The  Jew  replied,  "no  meaning  to  conceal. 
I  only  thought,  I  could  but  only  think- 
Why,  see,  Paul  was  Gamaliel's  pupil  once, 
And  loved  his  master,  so  as  such  can  love  ; 
At  least  I  thought  so.      Paul,  for  sure  I  know, 
Gamaliel  like  a  doting  father  loved." 

"  Thou  dost  not  thus  explain,  '  It  was  not  meant ' ; 
Out  with  thy  thought,  sir  Jew,"  the  chiliarch  said. 
"What  was   not   meant?     By  whom   not  meant? 

Forsooth. 

Not  by  Gamaliel  meant  that  he  should  die? 
Except  the  suicide,  none  means  to  die  ; 
And  death  like  this  is  not  the  suicide's." 

"  Oh,  nay,  sir,"  Shimei  said,  "  no  suicide 
Was  our  Gamaliel ;  far  the  heinous  thought ! 


108  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

A  good  old  man,  whom  all  the  people  loved, 
Paul  even,  yea,  Paul — I  thought  —  till  now  —  but 

now  — 

But  I  will  not  believe  so  base  of  him, 
Even  him ;  he  did  not  mean  it,  did  not  meart 
Worse  than  to  make  Gamaliel  deeply  sleep. 
Paul's  drug  belike  was  stronger  than  he  thought, 
Or  weaker  waxed  Gamaliel  with  his  age. 
Paul  would  himself  repent  it,  now,  too  late  — 
Particularly  since  of  no  avail, 
Thy  wise  forestalling  plan  defeating  his, 
And  fruit  none  from  it  ripening  to  his  hand !" 

"  This  is  too  foully  base  ! "  said  Lysias, 
And  Shimei's  heart  misgave  him  with  a  fear. 
'Too  foully  base  insinuation  mine, 
Does  Lysias  mean?'  he  closely  asked  himself; 
But  calmly,  with  deep  candor,  said  aloud  : 
"Yea,  even  for  Paul,  beyond  belief  too  base! 
Paul  never  meant  it,  I  shall  still  insist. 
He  meant  at  most  such  sleep  as  should  prevail 
Over  Gamaliel's  scruple  to  take  part 
Willingly  in  his  surreptitious  flight. 
And  such  a  master  of  his  arts  is  Paul, 


Book  III.    SHI  MET  AND  THE  CHI  LI  ARCH.  109 

I  shrewdly  doubt  if  here  his  mark  he  missed. 

Were  Paul  but  now  at  hand  to  try  his  skill, 

I  should  not  wonder  yet  to  see  this  swoon 

Yield  to  some  potent  drug  of  counter  force, 

And  good  Gamaliel  wake  to  life  again. 

Once,  as  they  say  —  in  Troas,  I  believe  - 

Where  he  all  night  was  lengthening  out  harangue, 

After  his  manner,  in  an  upper  room, 

A  youngster,  tired  to  death  of  hearing  him, 

And  sensible  enough  to  go  to  sleep, 

Not  sensible  enough  to  seat  him  safe, 

Fell  headlong  out  of  window,  whence  he  sat, 

A  good  three  stories'  fall  —  which  finished  him. 

Stay,  not  so  fast  —  thou  reckonest  without  Paul ! 

Yea,  Paul  performed  some  sort  of  magic  rite 

Over  the  body  of  the  luckless  lad, 

Which,  presto,  brought  him  round  as  brisk  as  ever ! 

A  mighty  master  in  his  kind,  that  Paul!" 

"  Perish  thy  Paul  with  his  accursed  craft !" 
Burst  out  the  chiliarch  in  indignant  heat. 
''Would  I  but  had  him  back  here  safe  in  thrall !  — 
I  should  have  let  them  rend  him  limb  from  limb!'* 

A  sudden  hope  beyond  the  bounds  of  hope 


1 10  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Flourished  up  rank,  gourd-like,  in  Shimei's  breast. 
Were  it  but  possible  to  have  Paul  back, 
To  take  that  walk  yet  to  the  judgment-hall ! 
The  forty  faithful  should  not  fail  their  task  ! 

"  Might  I  propose  if  it  be  yet  too  late  ?" 
With  timid  daring,  Shimei  inquired. 
"A  fleet-foot  horse  should  overtake  the  troop, 
If  so  thou  choose,  and  turn  them  hither  back. 
And  thou  couldst  cause  that  Paul  exert  his  power 
To  lift  this  corpse  into  a  living  man  — 
Which  were  a  famous  spectacle  to  see ! 
Besides  that  then  thou  mightst  assure  thyself, 
Through  counsel  of  our  Sanhedrim,  what  crimes 
Worthy  of  death  are  proved  upon  this  Paul." 

"  Thou  art  a  superserviceable  Jew," 
The  chiliarch  frowned  and  said.     A  choleric  man, 
He  choleric  now,  through  self-expression,  grew. 
Exasperate  thus,  he  added:  "'Ruler'  thou 
Of  thine  accursed  nation  —  as  I  hear  — 
Me  too  thou  fain  wouldst  rule,  with  thy  advice 
Officiously  advanced  unsought.     Know,  then, 
That  I  confound  thee  with  thy  race,  and  curse 
Ye  all  together,  pestilent  brood  —  not  less 


Book  III.     SHIMEI  AND   THE  CHIIJARCH.  i  i  r 

Thee  than   thy  fellows,  whom  thou  rulest,  forsooth, 

Worthy  to  rule  those  worthily  so  ruled  ! 

Like  ruler  to  like  people,  vipers  all ! 

If  I  believe  thee  of  thy  brother  Paul, 

It  is  no  wise  that  I  suppose  thee  true 

Rather  than  him  ;  but  only  that  I  reckon 

One  rascal  feels  another  by  mere  kin, 

And  can,  and,  if  so  be  he  hates  him,  will, 

Into  his  own  soul  look  and  paint  him  that  — 

Making  a  likeness  apt  to  two  at  once  ! 

Nay,  nay,  thou  wretched,  reptile  Jew,  all  thanks! 

I  would  not  have  Paul  back  upon  my  hands. 

I  am  well  rid  of  him,  and  now  hence  thou  ! 

Go  tell  thy  fellow-elders  of  the  Jews 

That  here  Gamaliel  lies,  dead  or  aswoon, 

And  bid  them  haste  to  bear  him  hence  away. 

Go,  not  one  further  word  from  thy  foul  mouth, 

Lest  whole  thou  never  go  !  " 

Red  with  his  wrath, 

Abruptly  on  his  heel  turned  the  wroth  man 
And  disappeared  within.     The  Jew  so  spurned  — 
Though  disappointed,  imperturbable  — 
With  wry  grimace  hugging  himself,  made  speed 


1 1 2  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

To  use  the  freedom  thus  in  overplus 

Thrust  on  him,  and  incontinently  went. 

Scarce  was  he  well  without  the  castle  gate, 

When  a  brusque  message  from  the  chiliarch 

Summoned  him  back.      He  came,  with  supple  knee 

Cringing  his  thanks  and  deprecations  dumb. 

"So  act  thy  abject  language,  if  thou  will, 

But  no  word  speak,  edging  thine  ear  to  hear," 

The  chiliarch,  from  his  heat  of  passion  passed 

To  a  grim  mood  of  resolution,  said  ; 

"  I  will  that —  no  delay  —  thou  hither  bring 

Large  satisfaction  from  thy  countrymen  — 

Just  measure  of  their  estimate  of  thee  !- 

That  thou  wilt  duly  bide  within  command 

The  suddenest  from  this  castle,  and  appear, 

Whenever  I  may  call  for  thee,  to  go 

Whithersoever  I  shall  bid  thee  hence, 

Whether  to  Csesarea  or  to  Rome, 

Whether  now  presently  or  hereafter  long, 

Accuser  meet  and  witness  against  Paul. 

Count  it  that  thou  thus  much  at  least  hast  gained, 

Through  thy  this  night's  adventure,  chance,  to  wit, 

Assured  chance,  thy  famished  grudge  to  glut 

Upon  thy  brother  rogue  and  countryman  — 


Book  III.    SHI  MET  AND   THE  CHI  LI  ARCH. 

Be  he,  that  is,  the  wretch  thou  paintest  him, 
And,  mark  it  well,  be  thou  his  overmatch 
In  lying  eloquence  to  make  appear 
Likeliest  whatever  best  thy  turn  shall  serve. 
Perhaps  twin  rascals,  of  each  other  worthy, 
Will,  both  at  once,  and  each  the  other,  prove 
Just  to  be  what  they  are,  and  earn  their  doom  !" 
"Send  with  this  worthy,"  thus  the  chiliarch, 
To  his  centurion  turning,  said,  "some  man 
Who  knows,  if  nothing  more,  thus  much  at  least, 
How  to  be  adder-deaf  and  death-like  dumb  — 
To  dog  him  hence  about  and  hither  back ! " 
"  I  wish  thee  pleasure  of  thy  evening  walk ! " 
To  Shimei,  in  mock  courtesy,  he  said. 

With  pleasantry  as  bitter  as  his  own 
The  mocker  found  himself  a  second  time, 
And  now  to  discomposure  worse,  dismissed. 
Of  his  own  will  he  gladly  would  have  gone 
From  east  to  west  as  wide  as  was  the  world, 
To  weave  the  meshes  of  his  witness  false 
About  Paul's  feet,  or  still  to  ambush  him 
With  instant  bloody  death  at  unawares ; 
But  thus  to  go,  a  lasso  round  his  neck 


1 14  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  III. 

Held  in  the  hand  of  Rome  —  it  irked  him  sore. 
His  heart  misgave  him  heavily;  he  felt : 
'And  here  perhaps  is  destiny  for  me, 
Perhaps,  who  knows  ?  at  last,  at  last,  for  me ! 
On  mine  own  head  do  I  Paul's  house  pull  down?' 

Strange,  but,  born  with  the  boding  sense  thus 

born 

Of  unguessed  danger  for  himself,  there  crept 
Into  that  case-hard  heart,  long  exercised 
To  plot  of  mischief  for  his  fellow-man, 
A  softness,  that  was  nigh  become  remorse, 
A  kind  of  pity  from  self-pity  sprung, 
Toward  whoso  was  endangered,  yea,  even  Paul ! 
It  was  the  slow  beginning  of  an  end  • — 
Slow,  liable  to  be  quenched  like  smoking  flax, 
Yet  not  so  quenched  to  be  —  with  Shimei. 
Meanwhile,  from  this  to  that  there  stretched  much 

road, 
And  Shimei  still  had  demon's  work  to  do. 


BOOK     IV. 
BY  NIGHT  FOR  C^iSAREA. 


The  narrative  returns  to  Paul  riding  with  young  Stephen, 
under  escort  of  Roman  soldiers,  toward  Csesarea.  The  uncle 
and  nephew  (at  sufficient  remove  from  the  cavalry  before 
them  and  the  infantry  behind  them)  after  an  interval  of 
silence,  engage  in  conversation  on  a  subject  suggested  by 
young  Stephen's  quoting  against  Shimei  one  of  the  impreca 
tory  psalms.  This  conversation  is  prolonged  till  Antipatris 
is  reached,  from  which  point  young  Stephen  comes  back  to 
Jerusalem  with  the  returning  foot-soldiers,  while  Paul  goes 
on  with  the  horse  to  Caesarea. 


BY  NIGHT  FOR   C^ESAREA. 

Clanging  their  armor  and  their  arms  alight 
In  doubtful  glimmer  from  the  torches  blown, 
Forward  into  the  silence  and  the  dark, 
Through  the  strait  street,  out  from  the  city  gate, 
Along  the  ringing  highway  stretched  in  stone 
To  Caesarea  from  Jerusalem, 
Rode  vanguard  in  that  order  of  array 
The  turm  of  horse  —  in  count  three  score  and  ten, 
But  many  fold  to  seeming  multiplied 
Under  the  shadowy  light  that  showed  them  half, 
Half  hid  them,  and  amid  the  numerous  noise 
And  movement  of  their  massive  martial  tread. 
The  centuries  of  foot  the  rear  composed, 
While  midst,  between  the  horse  and  infantry, 
And  double-guarded  so  from  every  fear  — 
Before,  behind,  commodious  interval - 
Those  Hebrew  kinsmen,  Paul  and  Stephen,  rode. 

A  league  now  measured  under  the  still  heaven  - 
Quiet,  they  twain,  as  the  beholding  stars  - 
And  Stephen  heard  the  silence  at  his  side 


I  iS  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

Softly  become  the  sound  of  a  low  voice. 

As  when  the  ground  parts  and  a  buried  seed  — 

Quickened  already  in  that  genial  womb, 

But  viewless  —  steals  from  darkness  into  light, 

So,  with  such  unperceived  transition,  now, 

Melodious  meditation  in  Paul's  heart 

Grew  out  of  secret  silence  into  song. 

Stephen,  who,  from  his  very  cradle  taught, 

The  holy  lore  of  Scripture  had  by  heart, 

Knew  the  subdued  preamble  that  he  heard 

For  echo  from  the  music  of  a  psalm. 

'  Mine  uncle  of  Gamaliel  muses  ! '  he 

Felt  from  the  moment  that  thus  Paul  began  : 

"Yea,  so  He  giveth  His  beloved  sleep! 

Blessed  be  God,  who  such  a  gift  gave  him  ! 

Blessed  be  God,  who  yet  such  gift  from  me 

Withholds,  gift  longed  for,  but  awaited  still 

With  patience  —  till  His  pleasure  to  bestow! 

Blessed  be  God !     He  doeth  all  things  well  ! 

It  may  be  I  shall  wake  until  He  come  ! 

But  if  I  sleep,  I  still  shall  sleep  in  Him, 

For  so  He  giveth  His  beloved  sleep! 

Sweet  gift,  and  sure  the  way  of  giving  sweet, 

Since  it  will  be  in  Him,  in  Him,  in  Him  — 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  CsESAREA.  i  19 

However  long  hence,  and  however  harsh, 
The  lullaby  may  be  that  brings  the  sleep, 
At  last,  at  last,  the  sleep  will  be  in  Him  ! 
To  wake  to  Jesus,  or  in  Him  to  sleep, 
Whichever  lot  for  me  He  choose,  I  choose. 
His  choice  I  do  not  know,  but  He  knows  mine; 
My  will,  he  knows,  is  His,  for  Him  in  me 
To  choose  with,  or  His  will  is  mine,  for  me 
In  Him  to  choose  with,  now  and  evermore." 
"Amen!"   Paul  murmured,  with  such  voice  as  if 
The  prayer  he  uttered  turned  to  sacrament. 

Stephen  a  little  lingered,  and  then  said  : 
"Thou  and  thy  voice,  O  honored  kinsman  mine, 
Commend  to  me  whatever  thou  mayst  say 
Or  sing  ;  that  inner-sounding  melody, 
Most  sweet,  which  never  other  makes  save  thee, 
But  oft  thou  makest  as  to  thyself  alone 
When  thou  alone  art,  or,  as  now,  with  whom 
Thou  lovest,  and  so  trustest,  utterly, 
It  seems  —  this  I  have  heard  my  mother  say, 
Who  loves  it,  as  I  love  it,  taught  by  her  — 
It  seems  to  pass  the  hearing  sense  unheard  ; 
The  deeper,  if  I  hear  it  not,  I  feel  ; 


!  20  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

My  heart  feeds  on  it  with  her  inner  ear. 

Yet,  and  however  so  commended,  yet 

Thy  choice  awakens  no  desire  in  me. 

Sleep,  to  thy  nephew,  uncle,  seems  not  sweet, 

Or  less  sweet  seems  than  waking  is  to  him. 

To  lie,  like  reverend  dear  Gamaliel  there, 

Still,  stirless  still  ;  cold,  marble  cold  ;  deaf,  dumb ; 

Calm,  yea,  too  calm,  for  ever,  ever  calm ; 

No  pain,  no  fret,  but  joy,  but  pleasure  none ; 

Nor  action,  nor  endeavor,  nor  attempt, 

Nor  strife,  nor  aspiration,  nor  desire  ; 

No  glorious  exultation  in  emprise, 

Or  rally  of  reaction  from  defeat ; 

Fear  none  indeed,  but  never,  never  hope  ; 

No  change,  no  chance  of  any  change,  the  same, 

The  same,  continuance  without  end  prolonged  ; 

Of  life  —  nothing,  but  only  dull,  dull  death 

And  apathy  —  O  uncle,  such  a  state, 

And  though  thou  call  it  sleep  in  Jesus,  yet  — 

Shall  I  confess  it,  uncle,  to  my  shame?  — 

It  has  no  charm  for  me,  I  wish  to  live  ; 

I  love  life,  motion,  and  the  sense  of  power. 

Hebrew  I  am,  in  spirit  as  in  blood, 

Yet  Greek  withal  enough,  if  Greek  it  be, 


I 

Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C^/A'A./.  J   \2\ 

t^A  L I F  0  HjjX^" 

To  dread  the  drear,  dark,  sunless  underworld, 
Hades  or  Sheol,  and  to  choose  instead 
This  cheerful  upper  air  and  joyousness, 
The  brightness  of  this  sun-enlightened  earth. 
And  I  should  like  to  see  what  I  with  life 
Can  do  ;  something,  I  trust,  besides  to  live, 
Some  worthy,  noble,  arduous  end  to  serve, 
To  wrestle  with  the  world  and  overthrow ! " 

Paul  thought  within  himself  :  '  Along  this  road, 
This  very  road,  some  score  of  years  ago, 
Saul,  in  the  early  dawn  of  that  spring  day, 
Rode  for  Damascus  from  Jerusalem, 
Nursing  such  thoughts  —  fair  thoughts  they  seemed 

to  him ! 

And  I  was  then  nigh  double  my  Stephen's  age  - 
Ah,  and  not  half  his  bright  young  innocence  ! ' 

"  It  is  thy  youth,"  to  Stephen  Paul  replied, 
"  Thy  youth  and  health,  the  fountain  fresh  of  life 
Unwasted,  springing  up  for  flow  in  thee  ; 
Life  is  the  secret  of  the  love  of  life. 
My  song  of  sleep  I  did  not  sing  for  thee, 
But  for  a  weary  older  man  than  thou, 
Who  has  already  lived,  already  seen 


122  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IV. 

What  he  could  do  with  life  !     Weary  am  I  - 
With  living  weary,  though  of  living  not  — 
And,  God  so  willing,  I  should  gladly  rest." 

The  sweetness  of  the  pensiveness  of  this, 
From  such  an  one  as  Paul  the  aged,  smote 
On  Stephen  with  a  stroke  as  of  reproof  — 
Unmeant,  to  him  the  less  resistible  — 
And  touched  to  recollection  and  remorse. 
He  said  :  "  O  uncle,  be  my  fault  forgiven, 
That  I  so  lightly  thought  but  of  myself ! 
This  ride  to  thee  is  added  weariness, 
Which  to  me  were  exhilaration  pure, 
Could  I  forget  again,  as  I   cannot, 
The  need  my  uncle  has  of  rest  instead. 
I  slept,  while  thou  wert  waking,  through  that  long 
Farewell  talk  with  thy  friend,  and  I  am  fresh 
From  slumber,  as  thou  art  with  waking  worn  — 
Besides  that  I  am  young  and  thou  art  old." 

"  Nay,  thou  wert  right,  my  lad,"  said  Paul  to  him  ; 
"  '  Rejoice  thou,'  so  that  ancient  preacher  cried, 
And  so  cries  God  Himself  within  the  blood, 
1  Rejoice  thou,  O  young  man,  in  thy  fair  youth, 
And  let  thy  heart  in  thy  young  days  cheer  thee.' 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  CsESAREA. 


123 


I  were  myself  the  egotist  thou  blamest, 

Were  I  to  hang  my  heavy  age  on  thee 

And  with  it  weigh  thy  blithesome  spirits  down  ; 

Besides  that  I  should  suffer  loss  deserved, 

Who,  in  the  midmost  of  my  spirit,  spring 

With  answering  pulse  to  pulse  of  youth  from  thee. 

Go  on,  my  Stephen,  for  Paul's  sake  be  glad, 

Thou  canst  not  be  more  glad  than  gladdens  me. 

Now  glad  we  both  are  surely  in  one  thing, 

That  thou  hast  saved  thine  uncle  from  that  death. 

Let  us  together  sing  a  gladsome  psalm." 

Then  softly  they  in  unison  began, 
Softly,  with  yet  their  accent  jubilant : 
"  '  Had  it  not  been  Jehovah  on  our  side, 
'Let  Israel  now'    -let  us  as  Israel  —  'say, 
'  Had  it  not  been  Jehovah  on  our  side, 
'  When  men,  together  sworn,  against  us  rose, 
'  Then  had  they  truly  swallowed  us  alive, 
'  When  sore  their  wrath  against  us  kindled  was ; 
'  The  waters  then  had  overwhelmed  us  quite, 
'  Over  our  soul  the  rushing  stream  had  gone, 
'  Over  our  soul  the  proud  exulting  waters. 
'  Forever  blessed  be  Jehovah  Lord, 


!  24  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

'  Who  did  not  give  us  to  their  teeth  a  prey  ! 

'  Escaped  our  soul  is,  like  unto  a  bird 

'  That  is  escaped  from  out  the  fowler's  snare ; 

'  The  snare  is  broken,  and  escaped  are  we. 

'  Our  help  is  in  the  Lord  Jehovah's  name, 

'  In  His  name  is,  who  fashioned  heaven  and  earth.' ' 

They  ceased,  but  presently  Paul's  voice  alone  : 
"  How  those  great  words,  which   God   the    Holy 

Ghost 

Spake  by  the  mouth  of  men  of  old,  elect 
To  be  His  earthly  oracles  —  how  they 
Fill  yet  the  mouth  of  him  that  utters  them, 
And  fill  the  ear  of  him  that  hears  them  uttered, 
And  the  heart  fill  of  him  that  makes  them  his  — 
Fill,  and,  enlarging  ever,  ever  fill ! 
They  satisfy  the  soul,  not  as  with  food 
That  sates  the  hunger,  to  cry  out,  '  Enough  ! ' 
But  as  with  hunger's  self,  and  appetite 
That  never  ceases  crying,  '  More  !  And  more  ! ' 
Forever  greater  growing,  and  sweeter  far 
Than  could  be  any  stay  to  such  desire  ! 
According  as  the  Lord  Himself  once  spake 
Pronouncing  blessed  those  whose  hunger  is 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C.ESAREA.  125 

For  righteousness,  and  promising  to  them 
Fulness.      Fulness  without  satiety 
Their  blessed  state!  State  blessed,  sure  —  to  be 
If  only  with  that  heavenly  hunger  filled!" 

To  Stephen  half,  but  half  in  ecstasy 
Of  pure  abandonment  to  worshiping 
High  passion  and  communion  rapt  above, 
Paul  so  his  heart  disburdened  of  its  praise. 

"  Yea,"  Stephen  said,  "  it  is  a  noble  psalm, 
Triumphal  in  its  gladness  at  escape 
Like  thine  from  evil  and  from  evil  men. 
With  all  my  heart  I  sang  it  thankfully  - 
At  least,  if  joyfully  be  thankfully ; 
Yet  have  /thoughts  not  uttered  through  that  psalm." 

The  elder  and  the  wiser  well  divined, 
From  something  in  the  manner  of  the  speech 
Of  Stephen,  as  too  from  the  words  themselves 
He  spoke,  what  was  the  spirit  of  those  thoughts 
Within  him,  which  the  chanted  psalm  left  dumb. 
Paul  safer  judged  it  for  his  nephew's  health 
Of  heart  and  conscience,  that  the  heat  and  stir 
Of  natural  thought  untoward  in  him  find 
Issue  in  utterance,  than  sealed  shut  to  be. 


I26  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IV. 

"  And  what,  then,  nephew,  were  those  thoughts  of 

thine?" 
In  gentle  serious  question  he  inquired. 

"  How  is  it,  uncle,"  swerving,  asked  the  youth  — 
For  a  fine  tact  to  feel  what  other  felt, 
Unspoken,  unbetokened,  though  it  were, 
Was  Stephen's,  and  this  power  of  sympathy 
Now  gave  him  sobering  sense  of  check  from  Paul  — 
"  How  is  it,  so  thou  deemest  me  meet  to  know, 
I  never  hear  thee  speak  of  Shimei?" 

"  Ah,  Stephen,"  Paul  replied,  "  we  lack  not  themes 
To  speak  of,  promising  more  food  to  thee 
For  sweet  and  gracious  thought  and  feeling.     Yet 
I  think  of  Shimei,  and  to  God  I  speak 
Of  him  in  prayer,  often,  not  without  hope. 
I  never  will  abandon  him  to  be 
Himself,  the  self  that  now  is  he.     Too  well, 
Too  bitterly,  I  remember  what  I  was, 
I  myself,  once,  as  rancorous  as  he ! 
If  guileful  less,  that  was  the  grace  of  God, 
Who  made  us  differ  from  each  other  there. 
Hateful  to  him  I  needs  was,  from  the  first, 
But  I  was  hateful  more  than  needed  be ; 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  CsESAREA.  127 

I  helped  him  hate  me  by  my  scornful  pride. 
Would  from  his  hate  I  could  that  strand  untwine ! 
Hating  Paul  less,  he  less  might  Jesus  hate  ; 
Only  to  pity  Shimei  am  I  clear." 

"  Thy  patience  and  thy  meekness  make  me  fierce 
With  anger,  with  ungovernable  wrath 
Most  righteous,"  Stephen  cried,  "against  those  men 
Who,  hating,  hunt  mine  uncle  to  the  death  ! 
I  hate  them,  and  I  wish  them  —  what  themselves 
Wish  thee ;    dogs  of  the  devil  that  they  are  ! 
I  know  a  psalm  that  I  should  like  to  sing  — 
But  I  should  need  to  roughen  hoarse  my  voice, 
And  a  tune  frame  well  jangled  out  of  tune, 
To  sing  it  as  I  would,  and  as  were  meet. 
Thy  pardon,  but  my  rage  surpasses  bound ; 
To  think  of  what  thou  art  and  what  they  are ! 
Some  spirit  in  me,  right  or  wrong,  too  hot 
For  any  counsel,  even  thine  own,  to  cool, 
Forces  unto  my  lips  those  wholesome  words 
Of  hearty  human  hatred,  God-inspired, 
Most  needful  vent  and  ease  to  wish  like  mine  ; 
I  lift  to  God  the  prayer  Himself  inbreathed  : 

'  Hold  not  thy  peace,  thou  Lord  God  of  my  praise ! 


128  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IV. 

'  Who  hath  rewarded  evil  still  for  good, 

1  And  hatred  still  for  only  love  returned, 

'  Set  thou  a  wicked  one  lord  over  him, 

'  And  Satan  ever  keep  at  his  right  hand. 

'  When  he  is  judged,  then  let  him  guilty  prove, 

'  And  let  his  very  prayer  turn  into  sin. 

'  Few  let  his  days  be,  and  his  office  let 

'Another  take.      His  children  fatherless, 

'  His  wife  a  widow,  be.     Nay,  vagabonds 

'  His  children,  let  them  beg  from  door  to  door. 

1  All  that  he  hath,  let  the  extortioner 

'  Catch,  and  let  strangers  make  his  labor  spoil. 

'  Let  his  posterity  be  utterly 

'  Cut  off,  and  in  the  time  to  come  their  name 

'  Be  blotted  out.      Let  the  iniquity 

'  Of  his  forefathers  still  remembered  be 

*  In  the  Lord's  presence,  and  his  mother's  sin 
'  Not  blotted  out :  because  he  persecuted 

'  The  poor  and  needy  man,  and  those  that  were 
'  Already  broken-hearted  sought  to  slay. 
'  Cursing  he  loved,  and  cursing  came  to  him  ; 
'  In  blessing  he  delighted  not,  and  far 

*  From  him  was  blessing.     He  with  cursing 

clothed 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C&SAREA. 

*  Himself  as  with  his  garment,  and  it  sank 
'  Soaking  into  his  inward  parts  like  water 
'  And  penetrating  to  his  bones  like  oil. 
'  Amen  !     Let  cursing  be  forevermore 
'  As  if  the  raiment  wherewith  he  himself 
'  Covers,  and  for  the  girdle  of  his  loins 
'  About  them  belted  fast  forevermore  ! '  " 


Stephen  felt  blindly  that  the  eager  ire 
With  which  he  entered,  flaming,  on  that  strain 
Of  awful  imprecation  from  the  psalm, 
Faltered  within  his  heart  as  he  went  on  - 
Insensibly  but  insupportably 
Dispirited  toward  sinking  by  the  lack 
Of  buoying  and  sustaining  sympathy 
Supplied  it  from  without ;  as  if  the  lark, 
Upspringing,  on  exultant  pinion  borne, 
Should,  midway  in  his  soaring  for  the  sun, 
Meet  a  great  gulf  of  space  wherein  the  air 
Was  spun  out  thinner  than  could  bear  his  weight. 
He  ended,  halting  ;  and  there  followed  pause, 
Which  ponderable  seemed  to  Stephen,  so 
Did  his  heart  feel  the  pressure  of  that  pause. 
At  length  Paul  said,  with  sweetest  irony, 


129 


130  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

That  almost  earnest  seemed,  it  was  so  sweet : 
"Yea,  nephew,  hast  thou,  then,  already  grown 
Perfect  in  love,  that  thou  darest  hate  like  that?" 

It  was  not  asked  for  answer,  Stephen  knew, 
And  answer  had  he  none  he  could  have  given, 
No  answer,  save  of  silence,  much-ashamed. 
Paul  let  the  searching  of  himself,  begun 
And  busy  in  the  spirit  of  the  youth, 
Go  on  in  silence  for  a  while  ;  and  then 
In  gravest  sweet  sincerity  he  spoke  : 
"  Hating  is  sweet  and  wholesome,  for  the  heart 
That  can  hate  purely,  out  of  utter  love. 
But  who  for  these  things  is  sufficient —  save 
God  only  ?     God  is  love,  and  He  can  hate. 
But  for  me,  Stephen,  mine  own  proper  self, 
I  dare  not  hate  until  I  better  love. 
When,  as  I  hope,  hereafter  I  shall  be 
Perfect  in  love;  then  I  may  safely  hate  ; 
Till  then,  I  task  myself  to  love  alone." 

There  was  such  reverence  in  Paul's  gravity, 
Reverence  implied  toward  him  as  toward  a  peer, 
Not  peer  in  age,  but  peer  in  human  worth  — 
Toward  him,  so  young,  so  heady,  and  so  fond  — 


Book  IV.          7>r  NIGHT  FOR  CsESAREA. 

That  Stephen,  in  the  sting  of  the  rebuke 
Itself,  shaming  him,  though  so  gracious,  felt 
A  tonic  touch  that  made  him  more  a  man. 
Uplifted,  while  abashed,  he  dared  to  say  : 
"  Perhaps  I  trespassed  in  my  vehemence  ; 
But,  uncle,  did  not  God  inspire  the  psalm?" 


"  Doubtless,  my  Stephen,"  Paul  replied  ;  "  but  not, 
Not  therefore,  thee  inspire  to  use  the  psalm. 
Sound  thine  own  heart  now,  nephew,  and  tell  me, 
Which  was  it  in  thy  heart  that  prayed  the  prayer  — 
True  vehemence  in  sympathy  with  God, 
Or  vehemence  against  thy  brother  man  ? 
A  sentiment  of  sympathy  with  me 
Thou  canst  not  say,  for  I  have  no  such  wish 
As  that  thou  breathedst,  touching  any  man." 

"  Though  not  in  sympathy  with  thee,  at  least 
For  thy  sake,"  Stephen  said,   "mine  anger  burned." 

"  For  my  sake,  yea,  but  not  acceptably 
Even  so,"  said  Paul  ;  "since  neither  did  it  serve 
My  cause,  nor  please  me,  if  I  speak  the  truth. 
I  know  thy  love  for  me  and  hold  it  dear  ; 
All  the  world's  gold  were  no  exchange  for  it. 


132 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 


So,  doubt  not,  Stephen,  that  to  what  degree 
Love  for  thine  uncle  prompted  that  thy  prayer, 
Thine  uncle  thanks  thee  for  it  from  his  heart. 
But  let  us,  thou  and  I  together  both, 
To  our  own  selves  severely  faithful  be. 
Shall  we  not  say  that  that  love  faulty  is, 
Which  less  desires  to  please  the  one  beloved, 
Than  to  indulge  itself,  have  its  own  way? 
And  knowest  thou  not  it  would  have  pleased  me 

better - 

Since,  for  the  present,  question  is  of  me  — 
To  see  my  nephew  altogether  such 
As  I  myself  am,  lover  of  all  men, 
Hater  of  none,  not  even  mine  enemy? 
Thou  didst  not  love  me  well  enough  for  that ! 

"  Thy  love  though  precious  and  though  well-refined 
Had  yet  alloy  in  it  of  selfishness  — 
Of  specious,  almost  lovely,  selfishness, 
I  grant  thee ;  yea,  according  to  the  world, 
That  loves  its  own  illusions,  lovely  quite  — 
Of  such  a  selfishness  alloy  enough 
To  take  its  counsel  of  itself,  not  me, 
Blindly  abandoned  to  its  own  excess." 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C.ESAREA.  133 

"The  art  of  love  thou  makest  difficult!" 
Stephen,  with  chastened  deprecation,  said. 

"Not  'difficult,'  impossible,"  said  Paul, 
"  Save  to  whom  Jesus  makes  it  possible. 
I  wish  that  I  could  bring  thee  to  perceive 
How,  severed  from  Him,  thou  canst  not  love  at  all, 
Right  love,  I  mean,  the  one  safe  sense  of  love, 
Love  with  the  gift  of  immortality, 
Since  pure  and  perfectly-proportioned  love  ! 
Left  to  ourselves,  we  love  capriciously ; 
Ever  some  form  of  fond  self-love  it  is, 
Which  in  disguise  of  love  to  other  masks. 
If  thou  in  Jesus  truly  hadst  loved  me 
Then  hadst  thou  loved  me  as  I  would  be  loved, 
To  absolute  effacement  of  thyself 
Through  whole  replacement  of  thyself  with  me. 
Enormous  claim  seems  this  of  selfishness 
In  me?     But  I  describe  ideally 
The  love  that  I  myself  to  Jesus  bear. 
In  Him  I  lose,  and  find  again,  my  self, 
And  the  new  self  I  find  again,  is — He! 
It  is  but  as  united  thus  with  Him- 
My  wish,  my  will,  become  the  same  as  His  — 


!  34  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

That  I  dare  make  exaction  for  myself 

Of  love  that  seems  to  blot  another  out, 

Or  merge  him  in  a  new  and  different  self. 

I  ask  thee  —  not  my  will,  but  Christ's,  made  thine  — 

To  love  me  with  the  love  that  pleases  Him." 

"  All  this,"  said  Stephen,  "must  be  true,  I  feel- 
I  feel  it  better  than  I  understand." 

"I  also,"  Paul  said,  "in  this  mystery 
Am  wiser  with  my  heart  than  with  my  mind, 
I  feel  it  better  than  I  understand  ; 
Although  I  understand  it  better  too 
Than  I  can  make  it  plain  in  any  words." 

Whereon  in  silence  for  a  space  they  rode, 
While  their  thoughts  ranged  diverse  in  worlds  apart 

Then  Stephen  :  "  That  distempering  heat  in  me, 

0  uncle,  is  clean  gone  from  out  mine  heart, 
Slaked  by  the  overshadowing  of  thy  spirit, 
Like  the  earth  cooled  with  overshadowing  night. 

1  am  calm  enough,  I  think,  to  learn,  if  not 
Thy  difficult  high  doctrine  touching  love, 
Something  at  least  about  those  psalms  of  hate. 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  CsESAREA. 

Hate  is  the  spirit  of  the  psalm  I  said, 
Is  it  not,  uncle?" 

"  As  thou  saidst  it,  yea, 
Or  I  mistook  the  meaning  of  thy  voice," 
Said  Paul ;  "  whatever  meant  the  holy  words, 
The  tones,  I  felt,  meant  that  and  nothing  else." 

"  Could  then  those  words  themselves  mean  some 
thing  else?" 
Asked  Stephen. 

"  Yea,"  said  Paul,  "  for  words  are  naught 
But  empty  vessels  that  the  utterer  fills 
With  his  own  spirit  when  he  utters  them  ; 
The  spirit  is  the  lord  of  utterance." 

"  What  was  the  spirit  with  which  the  Spirit  of  God 
Breathed  these  into  the  soul  of  him  elect 
Among  the  sons  of  men  to  give  them  voice  ? 
Did  not  God  hate  whom  He  so  heavily  cursed?  ' 
Stephen  inquired  ;   and  Paul  at  large  replied  : 
"  God  hates  not  any,  as  wicked  men  count  hate- 
And  men  not  wicked  may,  in  wicked  mood- 
Nor  wills  that  of  the  souls  whom  He  has  made 
Any  should  perish  ;  rather  wills  that  all 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

Come  fo  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  and  live. 

But  look  abroad  upon  the  world  of  men  ; 

What^eest  thou  ?     Many  souls  resist  the  will, 

The  blessed  will  to  save,  of  God.     Of  these, 

Some  will  hereafter  yield  —  thou  khowest  not  who, 

But  some  —  and  let  themselves  be  saved.     Again, 

Some  will  to  the  end  resist  —  thou  knowest  not  who., 

But  some  —  and  obstinately  choose  to  die; 

Choice  is  the  fearful  privilege  of  all. 

Now,  toward  the  man  incorrigibly  bad, 

Who  evil  loves  and  evil  makes  his  good 

Forever,  without  hope  of  other  change 

Than  change  from  worse  to  worse  forevermore  — 

Toward  such  a  man,  what  must  the  aspect  be 

Of  the  Supreme  Eternal  Holiness? 

What  but  of  wrath,  or  as  of  wrath,  and  hate  ? 

Canst  thou  imagine  other  face  of  God 

Than  frown  and  threat  aflame  implacable 

Against  implacable  rebellion  set, 

And  sin  eternal,  to  eternal  sin 

Doomed,  for  self-doomed  through  free  unchanging 

choice  ? 
One  flame  burns  love  toward  love,  and  hate  toward 

hate  — 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C&SAREA.  13; 

i 
Toward  hate  that  utmost  love  cannot  subdue, 

The  hate  that,  like  the  stubborn  diamond-stc  nte 
Amid  the  fiercest  fires  rebellious,  bides  4 

Still,  in  love's  sevenfold-heated  furnace,  hate. 
That  flame  is  the  White  flame  of  holiness  - 
Which  God  is,  and  whose  other  name  is  love." 

"  God    is    a   dreadful    thought,"    said    Stephen. 

"Yea," 

Said  Paul ;  "  such  Jacob  felt  it  when  he  cried, 
'  How  dreadful  is  this  place ! '  and  Bethel  named 
The  place  where  God  was  and  he  knew  it  not. 
God  is  a  dreadful  thought,  dreadful  as  sweet  - 
The  sweetness  and  the  dreadfulness  are  one. 
But  never  was  the  dreadfulness  so  sweet, 
The  sweetness  never  yet  so  dreadful  shown, 
As  then  when  Jesus  died  on  Galvary  ! 
Shroud  thyself,  Stephen,  from  the  dreadfulness, 
Felt  to  be  too  intolerably  bright, 
In  the  cool,  shadowing,  sheltering  thought,  so  nigh, 
Of  mercy,  mercy,  still  in  judgment  sheathed." 

"  I  feel  the  buoyance  of  my  spirit  sink, 
Oppressed    by    the    great   weight    of    these    thy 
thoughts," 


138  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

Said  Stephen  ;  "  and  my  heart  is  very  still. 
I  wait  to  hear  what  God  the  Lord  will  speak." 

"  Hearken,"   said  Paul.     "Those  fearful  words  of 

curse 

Which  late  thou  nigh  hadst  turned  to  blasphemy, 
Daring  to  lade  them  with  thy  personal  spite 
Against  a  neighbor  man,  whom  we  must  love, 
Until  we  know  hereafter,  which  God  fend  ! 
That  he  bides  reprobate,  self-reprobate  - 
Those  maledictions  dire,  through  David  breathed, 
Express  not  human  hate,  but  hate  divine, 
Revealed  in  forms  of  human  speech,  and,  too, 
Inspired  in  whoso  can  the  height  attain 
To  side  with  God,  and  passionlessly  damn, 
As  if  with  highest  passion,  any  found  — 
Whom,  known  not  yet,  even  to  himself  not  known, 
Much  less  to  thee  or  me,  but  known  to  God, 
And  to  be  known,  in  that  great  day,  to  all  — 
Fixed  in  his  final  choice  of  evil  for  good. 
Henceforward,   Stephen,  when  thou  sayest  that 

psalm, 

Say  it  and  tremble,  lest  thyself  be  he, 
The  man  thou  cursest  in  its  awful  curse!" 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C&SAREA,  139 

"  If  it  were  right,"  said  Stephen,  after  pause 
Prolonged  in  solemn  chiding  of  himself, 
"  If  it  were  right  and  seemly,  things  profane 
To  mingle  with  things  sacred  so —  I  think 
Perforce  now  of  a  certain  tragedy 
I  read  once  by  that  Grecian  Sophocles, 
Wherein  a  Theban  king,  one  CEdipus, 
Denounces  on  a  murderer  frightful  doom, 
Dreaming  not  he  —  though  every  reader  knows  - 
The  murderer  he  so  curses  is  himself. 
I  shudder  when  I  think,  '  Were  it  to  be 
That  the  fierce  blasting  I  invoked  to  fall 
Upon  another's  head,  I  drew  on  mine: 
"Cursing  he  loved,  and  cursing  fell  on  him!" 
Forefend  it  God,  and  Christ  with  blessing  fill 
This  heart  of  mine,  too  hasting  prone  to  hate !" 
"Amen!"  said   Paul,  "  thou   prayest  for  me  and 

v 

Out  of  the  depths  of  the  long  hush  that  then 
Followed  between  those  midnight  travellers, 
Emerging,  like  a  diver  of  the  sea 
That  brings  up  dripping  pearl  from  sunken  cave 
And,  gladdened,  lifts  it  flashing  to  the  sun, 


140 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 


So,  to  his  young  companion  speaking,  Paul- 

Not  turning  while  he  spoke  his  countenance 

Toward  him,  but  fixed  right  forward  keeping  it, 

Intent,  as  on  an  object  not  of  sight, 

Before  him  held  with  unmaterial  hand, 

An  unmaterial  treasure  passing  price, 

Imagined  fair  by  the  creating  soul  — 

Said,  with  such  cheerful  rally  in  the  voice 

As  one  invites  with,  some  delight  to  share  : 

"  Wilt  thou  hear,  Stephen  ?     I  have  been  revolving 

In  form  a  kind  of  hymn  concerning  love, 

Which,  in  a  letter,  some  twelve  months  ago, 

I  wrote  the  church  in  Corinth.     There  was  need, 

For  they  were  sore  at  strife  among  themselves, 

Vying  with  one  another  to  outdo 

In  divers  showy  gifts  miraculous, 

Or  outward  deeds  that  daze  the  eyes  of  men  : 

Tongues,  prophecies,  the  keys  of  mysteries, 

High  knowledges,  sublime  degrees  of  faith, 

Almsgivings  to  impoverishment,  stout  heart 

To  brave  devouring  flames  in  testimony  — 

All  these  things,  but  for  lowly  love  small  care ! 

"  My  soul  was  worn  and  anxious  with  my  pain 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  1<OR   CsESAREA.  I4! 

At  such  distractions  of  the  church  of  Christ ; 

I  found  my  peace  at  last  in  this  thought,  '  How 

Love  would  heal  all,  would  gently  join  from  schism, 

And  in  one  bind  the  body  of  the  Lord  ! ' 

A  wish  ineffable  seized  me  to  make 

Love  lovely  to  those  loveless  ones.     I  had, 

With  the  wish  born,  and  of  the  wish  perhaps, 

A  sudden  vision  that  entranced  me  quite. 

I  saw  love  take  a  body  beautiful 

And  live  and  act  in  most  angelic  wise  ; 

It  was  as  if  a  heavenly  spectacle 

Let  down  before  me  by  a  heavenly  hand  — 

Not  to  be  viewed  with  unanointed  eyes; 

I  touched  my  eyes  with  eyesalve  and  beheld. 

Then  a  Voice  said,  '  What  thou  beholdest,  write.' 

I  took  my  pen  and  sought  to  catch  the  grace 

Of  being  and  behavior  shown  to  me, 

And  fix  it,  as  I  could,  in  form  and  phrase, 

For  those  Corinthians  and  all  men  to  see. 

A  living  picture,  and  a  hymn,  there  grew. 

"  Hymn  I  may  call  my  eulogy  of  love, 
Then  written,  for  indeed  it  seemed  to  sing 
Within  me,  as  I  mused  it,  and  the  tune 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 

Still  to  the  hearing  of  my  heart  is  sweet. 
I  felt,  and  feel,  a  kind  of  awe  of  it, 
Myself  that  made  it,  for  I  did  not  make 
It  wholly,  I  myself,  I  know  quite  well ; 
A  breath  divine,  breathed  in  me,  purified 
My  will  to  will  it,  and  my  soul  to  sing. 

"  My  Stephen  will  not  think  it  strange  that  thus 
Our  talking  of  an  hour  ago  on  hate 
Set  me  to  dreaming  counterwise  of  love. 
I  build  of  love  a  refuge  for  myself, 
Whither  to  run  for  rest  and  sanctuary 
From  thoughts  of  hatred  thirsting  for  my  soul. 
Love  is  my  house,  and  there  the  air  is  love  — 
My  shelter  round  about,  the  breath  I  draw. 
No  castle  is  there  like  my  house  of  love, 
Charmed  not  to  let  footstep  of  evil  in  ; 
And  what  will  quench  the  Wicked's  fiery  darts 
Like  love  drawn  round  one  for  an  atmosphere? 
Himself  gasps  breathless  with  but  love  to  breathe; 
Yea,  I  am  safe  from  him  if  I  can  love. 
And  love  I  can,  through  Christ  who  strengthens  me, 
Whatever  natural  force  I  feel  to  hate. 
I  love  to  love,  it  is  my  chief  delight ; 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C/ESAREA.  143 

I  triumph  by  it  over  all  my  foes. 
The  harder  these  my  triumph  make  to  win, 
The  more,  since  I  must  win  it  still  by  love, 
To  love  they  drive  me,  and  increase  my  joy. 
My  triumph  is  my  love,  and  my  love's  joy. 
But  thou  my  poem  hear  in  praise  of  love  : 

'  With  men's  tongues  speaking,  and  with  angels', 

yet, 

'  Love  lacking,  I  am  sounding  brass  become, 
'  Or  clanging  cymbal.      Prophecy  though  mine, 
'  And  mysteries  all  to  grasp,  and  knowledge  all, 
'  And  mine  though  be  all  faith  so  as  to  move 
1  Mountains,  I  yet,  love  lacking,  nothing  am. 
1  And  though  I  lavish  all  I  own  in  alms, 
1  And  though  I  yield  my  body  to  be  burned, 
'Yet  I,  love  lacking,  am  naught  profited. 

'  Love  suffers  long,  is  kind,  love  envies  not, 
'  Love  does  not  vaunt  herself,  is  not  puffed  up, 
1  Deports  herself  in  no  unseemly  wise, 
'  Seeks  not  her  own,  is  not  provoked,  imputes 
'  Not  evil,  at  unrighteousness  no  joy 
1  Feels,  but  her  joy  has  with  the  truth,  bears  up 
'  Against  all  things,  all  things  believes,  all  things 


144 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IV. 


'  Hopes,  undergoes  all  things.     Love  never  fails  ; 
1  But  whether  there  be  prophecies,  they  will 
'  Be  done  away,  tongues  whether,  they  will  cease, 
'  Whether  there  knowledge  be,  it  will  have  end. 
'  For  we  in  part  know,  and  we  prophesy 
'  In  part ;  but  when  that  which  is  perfect  comes, 
'  Then  that  which  is  in  part  will  pass  away. 
'  When  I  a  child  was,  as  a  child  I  talked, 
'  I  did  my  thinking  as  a  child,  I  used 
'  My  reason  as  a  child  ;  since  I  a  man 
'  Have  grown,  the  child's  part  I  have  put  aside. 
1  For  now  we  darkly,  through  reflection,  see, 
'  But  face  to  face  then.     Now  I  know  in  part, 
1  But  then  shall  I  know  fully,  even  as  I 
'  Also  am  fully  known.     And  now  these  three 
'  Bide,  faith,  hope,  love  ;    but  of  these  chief  is 
love.' 

"Stephen,  how  little  Shimei  guesses,"  Paul 
Said,  having  thus  his  hymn  of  love  rehearsed, 
"  The  secret  triumph  ever  over  him 
I  celebrate,  in  loving  him,  despite 
His  hating  me,  and  seeking  to  destroy  ! 
Who  knows  but  God  to  love  will  win  him  yet?" 


Book  IV.         BY  NIGHT  FOR  C&SAREA. 

A  certain  gentle  humor  exquisite 
Enlivened  and  commended  this  from  Paul. 
But  Stephen  answered  not ;  indignant  love 
Swelled  in  his  heart,  and  choked  within  his  throat 
The  way  of  words,  and  dimmed  his  eyes  with  tears. 

Thus  at  Antipatris  arrived,  they  halt  : 
Here  Stephen,  nursing  other  purpose  not 
Disclosed,  disclosed  to  Paul  a  wish  he  had 
To  go  back  with  the  infantry  returning, 
And  reassure  his  mother  that  all  was  well. 
Paul  sped  his  nephew  with  his  benison  ; 
And,  after  rest  had,  and  refreshment  meet, 
Himself  thence,  with  the  escort  cavalry 
Safeguarded,  on  to  Caesarea  rode, 
Not  lonely,  though  alone,  and  prisoner. 


BOOK     V. 
SHIMEI  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN. 


Stephen,  having  returned,  goes  at  once  to  the  chiliarch, 
his  secret  purpose  being  to  convict  Shimei  of  his  crime, 
through  certain  evidence  which  he  thinks  he  can  bring  to 
bear  on  the  case.  To  the  youth's  disappointment  and 
chagrin,  he  is  received  coldly  and  repellently  by  the  chiliarch 
now  much  out  of  humor  as  a  sequel  to  his  disagreeable  in 
terview  with  Shimei.  Dismissed  crestfallen  to  go,  Stephen 
is  suddenly  confronted  at  the  door  by  Shimei,  at  that 
moment  arriving  in  obedience  to  a  summons  from  the  chili- 
arch.  The  mutual  encounter  has  the  effect  on  the  chiliarch 
observing  it,  to  change  his  attitude  toward  Stephen,  making 
it  favorable  again.  Shimei  is  sent  to  Caesarea  under  sus 
picion  ;  where  Felix,  the  governor,  plans  a  hearing  for  the 
prisoner  Paul. 


SHIMEI  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN. 

At    Caesarea   soon    the    Sanhedrim, 
By    deputy   and    advocate,    appeared 
Before    the    bar   of    Felix   governor, 
To  implead  the  prisoner  Paul. 

The  high-priest  brought 
The  weight  and  dignity  of  rulership 
Supreme  among  his  people,  to  impress 
On  Felix  fitting  sense  of  the  grave  cause 
Now  come  before  him  to  be  judged.     Thin  veiled 
Beneath  the  decent  fair  exterior  show 
Of  only  public  and  judicial  aim 
And  motive  in  that  ruler  of  the  Jews 
(The  high-priest  Ananias),  deep  there  wrought 
A  leaven  of  personal  vindictiveness 
Twofold,  sullen  resentment  of  affront, 
And,  added,  that  least  placable,  that  worst 
Hatred,  the  hatred  toward  a  brother  wronged. 
Whom  he,  from  his  own  judgment-seat  —  profaned 
Thus  by  his  profanation  of  the  law- 
Had  wantonly  commanded  to  be  smitten 


150 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  V. 


Upon  the  mouth,  this  outraged  man  must  now 
Be  proved,  forsooth,  a  wretch  unmeet  to  live. 

But  Shimei,  as  prime  mover,  was  left,  too, 
To  be  prime  manager,  of  all.     Far  less 
Festive,  than  his  old  wont,  in  exercise 
Of  that  exhaustless  wit  his  own  in  wile, 
Serious  he  now,  yea  even  to  sadness,  seemed. 

And  reason  was.      For  Claudius  Lysias 
Had  summoned  him  to  presence  in  the  fort; 
And  there,  hap  not  to  have  been  imagined,  he, 
Besides  the  haughty  Roman  chief,  had  met 
Another  face  more  welcome  scarce  than  his. 

Young  Stephen's  purpose,  not  revealed,  had  been 
To  move  some  action  against  Shimei. 
This  gentle  Hebrew  youth  inherited 
Large  measure  of  the  wilful  spirit  high 
That  in  the  blood  of  all  his  kindred  ran. 
Of  his  own  motion  he,  without  advice, 
Nay,  headstrong,  in  the  teeth  of  thwart  advice, 
Which,  though  he  sought  it  not,  he  full  well  felt 
In  current  counter  to  his  wish  —  self-moved 
Thus,  and  self-willed,  Paul's  nephew  had  resolved 


BookV.     SHI  MET  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  I5j 

To  try  what  might  to  him  be  possible  - 
By  putting  in  the  place  of  the  accused 
Instead  of  the  accuser's,  that  base  man, 
His  uncle's  foe  —  to  free  his  uncle's  state, 
Once  and  for  all,  from  danger  and  annoy 
Due  to  the  restless  hate  of  Shimei. 
The  friendly  chiliarch  was  his  first  resort. 

In  one  swift  glance,  which  more  was  of  the  mind 
Itself,  perceiving  as  it  were  without 
Organ,  than  of  the  eye  with  which  it  saw, 
Stephen  that  night,  upon  the  point  of  time 
When  Shimei  was  arrested  and  brought  in, 
A  glimpse  had  caught  of  two  receding  forms 
Of  men  upon  the  street,  flying  as  seemed  ; 
Whom  instantly  he  knew  to  be  the  same 
With  that  pair  of  conspirators  to  slay, 
Whose  whispers  had  revealed  their  plot  to  him : 
These  were  the  stout  young  fellows  Shimei  set 
To  lie  in  wait  for  the  escaping  Paul. 
The  moment  they  beheld  their  master  seized, 
They  quickly  had  betaken  them  to  flight ; 
But  Stephen's  mind  flew  faster  than  their  feet, 
And  with  intangible  tether  had  them  bound. 


1 52  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  V. 

This  his  new  observation  of  the  twain 

Made  him  secure  of  recognizing  them 

Whenever  or  wherever  seen  again. 

With  so  much  clue  as  this,  no  more,  in  hand, 

To  guide  him  in  the  quest  of  testimony 

That  might  his  crimes  bring  home  to  Shimei  — 

Supposed  still  safe  in  keeping  at  the  fort  — 

Stephen  his  audience  with  the  chiliarch  sought. 

The  bright  hope  that  he  brought  in  coming,  sprung 
From  grateful  recollection  of  the  grac 
He  found,  that  morning,  in  the  Roman's  eyes, 
Was  promptly  damped  to  deep  dejection  now. 
The  chiliarch  met  him  with  a  cold  and  sour 
Seventy  of  aspect  that  repelled, 
Beyond  the  youth's  capacity  —  unbuoyed, 
For  this  occasion,  with  approving  sense 
Of  well-advised  attempt  at  least,  if  vain  — 
To  front  it  with  unruffled  brow.     Abashed 
He  stood,  confused  ;  the  blood  rushed  to  his  face; 
His  tongue  clung  to  his  mouth's  roof ;  and  in  all 
He  less  looked  like  that  youthful  innocence 
Which  won  the  Roman  so  in  his  soft  mood, 
Than  like  the  conscious  guilt,  uncovered  now, 


Book  V.     SHIM  El  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  153 

In  Shimei's  slant  insinuation  shown. 
The  chiliarch  by  reaction  was  relapsed 
Into  his  sternest  temper  of  disdain 
Embittered  by  suspicious  cynicism; 
Apt  sequel  of  the  interview  prolonged 
With  Shimei,  and  the  final  passionate 
Ejection  of  that  Hebrew  from  the  fort. 
He  now  awaiting  Shimei,  summoned  back 
Once  more,  to  be  to  Caesarea  sent, 
Here  was  that  Stephen  —  despicable  he 
Too,  doubtless,  like  his  despicable  race  ! 
Such  was  the  prompt  involuntary  set, 
Inhospitable,  of  the  chiliarch's  thought, 
For  welcome  of  the  youth  before  him  there. 

To  Stephen's  stammering  words  about  those  men, 
And  how  they  might  be  made  to  testify 
Of  Shimei's  desperate  plot  to  murder  Paul, 
Thus  bringing  Shimei  to  deserved  doom, 
The  Roman  tartly  said  :  "  Aye,  aye,  young  sir, 
I  think  it  like,  seems  altogether  like. 
You  Jews  could,  all  of  you,  I  doubt  not,  swear 
Of  one  another,  brethren  as  ye  be, 
Things  damnable  enough  to  crucify 


154 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  V. 


Ye  all,  and,  what  is  more,  for  just  that  once, 
Swear  true  !     But  thanks,  lad,  I  have  had  my  fill 
At  present  of  these  proffered  services." 

The  manner  was  dismissory,  more  even 
Than  were  the  words,  and  Stephen  bowed  to  go. 
But  his  own  manner  in  thus  bowing  changed, 
Although  he  spoke  not,  to  such  dignity, 
Recovered  from  his  discomposure  late, 
So  instantly  recovered,  and  so  pure  — 
Adulterate  in  no  trace  with  hardihood  — 
A  dignity  comportable  with  youth, 
While  eloquent  of  virtue  and  high  mind, 
And,  like  a  robe,  so  beautifully  worn 
Over  a  person  and  a  gesture  fair, 
That  Claudius  Lysias,  cynic  as  he  was 
That  moment,  seeing  could  not  but  admire. 

He,  on  the  point  to  bid  the  youth  remain, 
Wavering,  not  quite  persuaded, —  at  the  door, 
Bowing  his  different  bow,  stood  Shimei  ; 
That  sight  and  contrast  fixed  his  wavering  mind. 
"Stay  thou,  my  lad,"  abruptly  he  exclaimed  - 
Wherewith  another  fall  the  countenance  fell 
Of  Shimei,  cringing,  to  his  footsteps  glued. 


Book  V.     SHIMEI  AND   YOUNG 


155 


"  Look  yc  on  one  another,  ye  two  Jews," 

The  chiliarch  in  a  sudden  humor  said ; 

"  I  have  a  fancy  I  should  like  to  see 

How  two  reciprocal  accusers  such 

As  you  are,  rogues  both  —  though  one  young,  one 

old, 

In  roguery  —  if  your  mutual  witness  hold- 
I  say,  the  fancy  takes  me  to  observe 
How  two  accusers  of  each  other,  like 
Yourselves,  confronted  in  close  quarters  thus, 
Will  severally  enjoy  each  other's  stare." 

An  indescribable  something  in  the  tone 
Of  Claudius  Lysias  speaking  thus,  or  look 
Perhaps,  couched  in  the  eye  or  on  the  face 
Playing,  signified  clear  to  Shimei 
That  the  same  words  were  differently  meant 
To  Stephen  and  to  him ;  spoken  to  him 
In  earnest,  in  but  pleasantry  to  Stephen. 
Stephen's  high  air,  in  proud  sense  of  his  worth 
Wronged  by  misdoubt,  had  Shimei  led  astray. 
He  saw  it  as  a  sign  of  prosperous  suit  — 
Doubtless  against  himself  —  just  finished  there. 
Already  tuned  to  fear,  his  conscious  mind, 


156  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  V. 

Quite  disconcerted  by  this  fresh  surprise 

Of  some  detection  that  he  could  not  guess, 

Suddenly  wrote  abroad  on  all  his  mien 

A  patent  full  conviction  of  himself. 

As  more  and  more  his  heart  misgave  him,  worse 

Ever  and  worse  his  brow  was  discomposed. 

The  lively  opposite  of  Shimei's  change 
Was  meantime  making  Stephen's  face  more  fair. 
He,  at  the  chiliarch's  mating  of  himself 
With  Shimei,  though  in  veriest  raillery  meant, 
Felt  all  the  soul  of  manliness  in  him 
Stung  to  its  most  resistant ;  as  he  turned, 
Obedient  to  the  chiliarch's  word,  and  looked 
At  Shimei,  such  transfigurement  there  passed 
Upon  him  that  he  stood  there  glorified. 
An  infinite  repellence  seemed  to  ray 
From  out  his  eyes,  and  put  impassable 
Remove  between  him  and  that  other,  while 
Ascendance,  as  peculiar  to  a  race 
And  rank  of  being  wholly  different, 
Endued  him,  like  a  natural  right  to  reign. 
Such  kingly  to  such  servile  seen  opposed, 
Surprised  the  chiliarch  into  altered  mood. 


BookV.     SHIM  El  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN.  157 

"  Enough,"  said  he  ;  and,  writing  while  those  stayed, 
He  gave  to  Shimei  what  he  wrote  to  read. 
It  was  a  letter  Shimei  should  himself 
Convey  to  Felix  governor ;  it  ran  : 
"Who  brings  this  is  a  rascal,  as  I  judge; 
He  comes  to  accuse  the  Jewish  prisoner  Paul. 
Detain  him,  if  thee  please,  to  see  the  end ; 
The  end  should  be  perhaps  a  cross  for  him  /" 
Wincing,  the  miscreant  read  ;  he,  reading,  felt 
Draw,  from  Rome's  hand,  the  coil  about  his  neck. 
Choking  for  speech,  he,  ere  he  found  it,  heard 
The  chiliarch  say,  with  voice  hard  like  a  flint : 
"Thou  hast  thine  errand  ;  tarry  not,  but  go. 
Nay,  bide  a  moment ;  let  the  youngster  see 
What  message  I  have  given  thee  to  bear ; 
Then,  if  so  chance  thou  lose  it  on  the  way, 
He  can  supply  thy  lack  of  carefulness!" 

His  air  that  of  the  miser  who,  compelled, 
Gives  up  gold  hoarded,  like  his  own  heart's  blood, 
Shimei,  with  griping  pangs,  in  sick  recoil 
Of  grudging  overmastered  to  submit, 
Yielded,  as  if  he  were  withholding  it, 
The  hateful  letter  into  Stephen's  hand. 


158  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  V. 

Stephen,  as  one  not  daring  otherwise, 

Deigned  a  reluctant  look,  that,  seeking  not, 

Yet  seized,  the  sense  of  that  which  Shimei  showed  ; 

Softened,  he  gave  the  parchment  back  to  him. 

Prodded  with  such  oblique  sarcastic  spur 
To  heed  of  sinister  commission  such, 
Shimei  withdrew,  a  miserable  man. 

The  chiliarch  then  to  Stephen  —  who,  at  once 
Pity  of  Shimei's  utter  wretchedness, 
Shame  of  his  utter  abjectness,  conceived  — 
Said,  with  changed  tone  :  "  My  lad,  I   think  thee 

true ; 

That  miscreant  vexed  me  into  petulance. 
Thou  hast  not  altogether  missed  thy  mark 
In  coming  hither  now,  although  I  thus 
Seem  to  let  Shimei  for  the  present  slip. 
Follow  him,  if  thou  wilt,  to  Caesarea. 
With  letter  of  Bellerophon  in  charge, 
He  carries  his  own  sentence  thither  hence  ; 
Watch  it  —  if  slow  in  execution,  sure!" 

Sobered  by  triumph;  and  not  triumphing, 
Made  pensive  rather,  Stephen  went  away. 


Book  V.     SHIM  HI  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN. 


'59 


Forth  from  the  hour  when  Shimei,  so  dismissed, 
Shrank  out  of  presence  at  Antonki 
Collapsed  in  spirit  as  in  mien  and  port, 
He  to  the  end  was  seen  an  altered  man. 
Dejected,  absent,  like  a  criminal 
Convicted  of  his  crime,  sentenced  to  die, 
Though  day  of  death  unfixed,  imprisoned  not, 
Nay,  moving,  as  if  free,  about  the  world, 
To  view  not  different  from  his  fellow-men, 
Yet  with  a  sense  forever  haunting  him 
Of  doom  uncertainly  suspended  still 
Above  him,  that  at  any  moment  might 
In  avalanche  descend  upon  his  head- 
So  he  lived  joyless,  the  elastic  spring 
Broken  that  buoyed  him  to  his  wickedness. 
But  loth  he  had  to  Caesarea  gone, 
Where,  with  wry  looks  and  deprecation  vain, 
He  gave  the  letter  to  the  governor; 
Had  he,  to  ease  his  case,  dared  fail  the  trust, 
The  failure  would  have  failed  his  case  to  ease, 
Nay,  rather,  would  have  harder  made  his  case, 
Since  Stephen  could  report  what  he  did  not, 
And  could  besides  report  his  negligence. 
But  Shimei  dared  not  fail  ;  he  knew  offence, 


160  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  V. 

Added,  of  disobedience,  would  but  draw 
Speedier  the  dreaded  danger  ruining  down. 

Joy  is  to  some  a  spring  of  energy, 
Which  failing,  all  their  force  for  action  fails  — 
They  having  in  themselves  no  virtue  proof 
Against  the  palsying  touch  ill  fortune  brings ; 
Of  such  was  Shimei.     In  his  broken  state, 
His  measures  he  took  feebly,  without  hope. 
The  wish  —  which  with  the  expectation  joined 
Would  have  made  hope — yea,  even  the  very  wish, 
That  life  and  strength  of  hope,  was  well-nigh  dead 
In  him  ;  for  he  no  longer  now  desired 
The  thing  he  wrought  for  still,  under  constraint 
Of  habit,  and  that  strange  necessity 
Which  sense  of  many  eyes  upon  him  fixed 
To  watch  him  working  the  familiar  wont 
Of  Shimei,  bred  within  this  wretched  man, 
Forcing  him  like  a  fate. 

Fit  tool  he  found 

In  one  Tertullus  —  hireling  Roman  tongue, 
Or  function  mere,  not  organ  —  who,  for  price, 
Spoke  customary  things  accusing  Paul 
To  Felix,  for  the  Jews ;  these  joined  their  voice 


BookV.     SHIM  El  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN. 

In  sanction  of  the  truth  of  what  he  said. 

Hut  Paul  denying  their  base  charges  all, 

Denying  and  defying  to  the  proof, 

The  governor  postponed  them  for  a  time. 

Paul  he  remanded  into  custody, 

Hut  bade  with  courteous  ways  distinguish  him ; 

Whereof  the  secret  cause  was,  not  a  sense 

In  Felix  of  the  righteousness  of  Paul, 

With  therefore  sweet  magnanimous  desire 

To  grace  him  what  in  loyalty  he  could  - 

Of  no  such  height  was  Felix  capable  - 

The  cause  none  other  was  than  Shimei ; 

W7ho  Paul  however  served  not,  but  himself. 

For  Shimei  dreaded  what  he  seemed  to  seek, 
The  sentence  "Guilty,"  at  the  judgment-bar 
Of  Felix  on  this  prisoner  Paul  pronounced  ; 
Dreaded  it,  lest  appeal  therefrom  be  claimed 
By  Paul  to  the  imperial  ear  at  Rome. 
He  himself,  Shimei,  then  might  be  compelled 
To  go  likewise  the  same  unwelcome  way, 
Though  witness  and  accuser  only  named, 
Yet  labelled  target  for  suspicious  eyes, 
Where  eyes  suspicious  oft  portended  doom. 


1 62  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  V. 

So  he  to  Felix  —  less  with  words  than  signs, 
Mysterious  looks  and  reticences  deep, 
As  of  a  man  who  could,  if  but  he  would, 
And  were  it  wise,  tell  much  that,  left  untold, 
Might  well  be  guessed  from  things  kept  back,  yet 

thus, 

And  thus,  and  thus  (in  Shimei's  pantomime) 
Winked  with  the  eye  and  with  the  shoulder 

shrugged — 

Hint  signalled  that  there  hid  a  gold  mine  here, 
For  who,  with  power  like  his,  conjoined  the  skill 
To  make  it  yield  its  treasure  to  demand ; 
This  Paul  had  wealthy  friends  who  gladly  would 
Buy  at  large  price  indulgences  for  him. 
Let  Felix  hold  out  hopes,  deferring  still, 
Suffer  his  friends  to  come  and  visit  Paul, 
Give  hearings  to  his  case,  but  naught  decide, 
Weary  him  out,  and  them,  with  long  delays  — 
Till  a  realm's  ransom  woo  his  clutch  at  last. 

Now  Shimei  thus  consummately  contrived; 
For  Felix  was  a  mercenary  soul, 
Who  governed  in  the  spirit  of  a  slave. 
He,  therefore,  doubting  not  that  Shimei 


Book  V.     SHIM  El  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  163 

(Confessed  the  player  of  a  double  part, 

Pander  to  him,  accuser  for  the  Jews) 

Was  all  the  rascal  that  the  chiliarch  guessed, 

Yet  deemed  he  saw  his  profit  in  the  man. 

He  could  use  Shimei  to  his  own  behoof, 

In  winning  what  he  coveted  from  Paul ; 

Meantime  remitting  not  his  hold  on  him 

For  final  expiation  of  his  crimes. 

The  two,  well  fitted  to  each  other,  thus 

Played  each  his  several  sordid  game  with  each, 

And  neither  by  the  other  was  deceived, 

Both  equally  incapable  of  trust, 

As  equally  unworthy  to  be  trusted  — 

Until,  two  years  accomplished,  Felix  fell 

From  power  at  Caesarea ;  when,  his  greed 

Long  disappointed  of  its  glut  of  gain 

From  Paul,  he  left  him  there  in  prison.     He  hoped 

The  dreaded  accusation  of  the  Jews 

For  his  abuse  of  power,  surpassing  bound, 

Might  less  fierce  follow  him  to  Rome,  should  he, 

By  that  injustice  added,  in  their  eyes 

His  thousands  of  injustices  atone. 

Moreover  Felix  hated  Paul,  as  hates 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  V, 

1 04 

The  upbraided  ever  his  upbraider,  when, 

The  conscience  yielding,  yet  the  will  withstands. 

For,  during  the  imprisonment  of  Paul, 

And  that  prolonged  delay  of  trial  due 

Him,  this  base  freedman  — basely  raised  to  be 

A  ruler  — as  a  pleasure  to  his  wife, 

Devised  a  feast  of  eloquence  for  her. 

She  was  a  Jewess,  beautiful  as  vile, 

And  as  in  beauty  brilliant,  so  in  wit ; 

She  would  enjoy  it,  like  a  spectacle, 

To  sit,  in  emulated  state,  a  queen 

Beside  her  husband  in  his  judgment-hall, 

And  there,  at  ease  reclined,  her  lord's  delight, 

In  her  resplendent  and  voluptuous  bloom, 

Disport  herself  at  leisure,  eye  and  ear 

Tasting  their  satisfaction  to  the  full, 

To  see  and  hear  her  famous  countryman 

Expound  his  doctrine  and  defend  his  cause. 

Not  often,  in  his  rude  Judsean  seat 

Of  government  in  banishment,  could  he 

Proffer  the  stately  partner  of  his  throne 

An  equal  hope  of  entertainment  rare. 

So,  royal  in  their  pomp  of  progress,  came, 


Book  V.     SHIM  El  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN. 

One  day,  the  lustful  Felix  with  his  bride, 
Adulterous  Drusilla,  guilty  pair  ! 
And,  on  his  throne  of  judgment  seating  him, 
Bade  Paul  before  them,  in  his  prisoner's  chain, 
To  burn  the  splendors  of  his  oratory 
In  pleading  for  the  faith  of  Jesus  Christ  — 
Fresh  pastime  to  the  cloyed  and  jaded  sense 
For  pleasure  those  voluptuaries  brought ! 
Uncalculated  thrills,  not  of  delight, 
That  lawless  Roman  ruler  had  purveyed 
Himself,  to  chase  each  other  in  their  chill 
Procession  through  the  currents  of  his  blood, 
And,  shuddering,  shoot  along  his  nerves,  and  freeze 
His  marrow  !  —  conscience  in  him  her  last  sign 
Making  perhaps  that  day. 

But  will  he  heed  ? 

Or  will  the  terrors  of  the  world  to  come 
Vainly  appal  him  with  the  eternal  fear? 


BOOK    VI. 
PAUL   BEFORE    FELIX. 


Paul  discourses  solemnly  before  Felix  and  his  queen 
Drusilla,  treating  the  topics  of  righteousness,  self-control, 
and  impending  judgment.  The  effect  is  to  make  Felix  show 
visible  signs  of  discomposure  on  his  judgment-seat.  Drusilla, 
apprehensive  of  consequences  disastrous  to  herself  from  her 
wicked  husband's  awakened  remorse  and  fear,  invokes  the 
intervention  of  Simon,  that  Cyprian  Jewish  sorcerer  who  had 
at  first  been  instrumental  in  bringing  the  guilty  pair  together. 
Simon  plays  upon  the  superstition  of  Felix  with  his  pre 
tended  magic  arts. 


PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX. 

The  power  of  the  Most  High,  descending,  fell 
On  Paul,  as,  led  of  soldiers,  he  came  in, 
Bound,  at  the  mercy  of  the  governor, 
And  took  his  station  in  that  presence  proud. 
At  once,  but  without  observation,  changed 
Became  the  parts  of  Felix  and  of  Paul. 
Paul,  from  a  prisoner  of  Felix,  now 
To  Felix  was  as  captor  and  as  judge  ; 
And  Felix  was  as  prisoner,  bound,  to  Paul. 

Paul  his  right  hand  in  manacles  stretched  forth, 
As  if  it  were  a  scepter  that  he  swayed, 
And  said  :  "  Most  excellent  lord  Felix,  hear, 
And  thou,  Drusilla,  unto  Felix  spouse! 
Obedient,  at  thy  bidding,  I  am  come 
To  make  thee  know  the  faith  in  Jesus  Christ, 
And  wherefore  I  obey  it,  and  proclaim. 
Know,  then,  that  Jesus,  He  of  Nazareth, 
The  Crucified  of  Calvary,  is  Christ, 
The  Christ  of  that  Jehovah  God  Most  High 
Who  by  His  word  created  heaven  and  earth, 


LIB/ 

OF   THK 

UNIVi 


j  70  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

And  Him  anointed  to  be  Lord  of  all. 
God  was  incarnate  in  Him  here  on  earth, 
To  reconcile  the  world  unto  Himself  ; 
And  I  beseech  men  —  I,  ambassador 
From  Him,  as  if  the  Lord  God  did  by  me 
Beseech  —  beseeching  them,  'Be  reconciled 
To  God.' 

"  For  all  men  everywhere  are  found 
By  wicked  works  God's  enemies  ;  on  all, 
God's  wrath,  weight  insupportable,  abides  ; 
A  message  this,  that  down  from  heaven  He  brought, 
That  Christ  of  God,  that  Savior  of  the  world. 
But  His  atonement  lifts  the  load  of  wrath, 
Which  down  toward  hell  the  sinking  spirit  weighed, 
Lifts,  nay,  transmutes  it  to  a  might  of  love, 
Which  bears  the  spirit  soaring  up  to  heaven. 
'  Believe  in  Jesus,  and  be  reconciled 
To  God '  ;    that  is  the  gospel  which  I  preach. 
Obey  my  gospel,  and  be  saved  —  rebel, 
And  pray  the  mountains  to  fall  down  on  thee 
To  hide  thee  from  the  wrath  of  God,  and  hide 
Thee  from  the  wrath,  more  dreadful,  of  the  Lamb. 
For  Lamb  was  Jesus,  when  on  Calvary 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX  171 

In  sacrifice  for  sin  He  died;  but  when, 

Resurgent  from  the  tomb,  above  all  height 

Into  the  heaven  of  heavens  He  rose,  and  sat 

On  the  right  hand  of  glory  and  of  power 

With  God,  then  the  Lamb  slain  from  far  before 

The  world  was  founded,  by  His  blood  our  guilt 

To  purge,  as  capable  of  wrath  became, 

As  He  before  was  capable  of  love. 

He  burns  against  unrighteousness,  in  flame 

Which,  kindling  on  the  wicked,  them  devours. 

There  is  no  quenching  of  that  fearful  flame, 

As  ending  none  is  there  of  what  it  burns  ; 

The  victim  lives  immortally,  to  feed 

The  immortal  hunger  of  that  vengeful  flame. 

It  swifter  than  the  living  lightning  flies, 

To  fasten  on  its  victim  in  his  flight ; 

No  refuge  is  there  in  the  universe 

For  fugitive  from  it.     Thou,  Felix,  knowest 

No  hider  can  elude  the  ranging  eyes, 

No  runner  can  outrun  the  winged  feet, 

No  striver  can  resist  the  griping  hands, 

That  to  the  emperor  of  the  world  belong ; 

Whom  Coesar  wishes,  Ceesar  has  for  prey." 


j  72  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

Paul  fixed  his  gaze  point-blank  on  Felix  while 
These  things  he  said,  not  as  with  personal  aim- 
Which  might  have  been  resented,  being  such, 
Resented,  and  thereby  avoided  quite  - 
Rather  as  if,  through  body,  he  beheld 
His  hearer's  soul,  and  set  it  with  his  eyes 
Far  forward  into  the  eternal  world, 
And  there  saw  the  fierce  flame  he  spoke  of,  fast 
Adhering  or  inhering,  burn  that  soul, 
With  burning  unescapable  by  flight 
Or  refuge  through  the  universe  of  God. 
Paul's  vision  was  so  vivid  that  his  eyes 
Imprinted  what  he  saw  upon  the  soul 
Of  Felix,  that  almost  he  saw  it  too. 
He  stared  and  listened,  with  that  thought  intense 
Wherewith  sometimes  the  overmastering  mind 
Will  blind  the  eyesight  and  the  hearing  blur. 

A  sense  of  insecurity  in  power, 
Bred  in  him  by  his  consciousness  of  crime, 
With  dread,  too,  of  the  moment,  then  perhaps 
Already  nigh  !  when  that  omnipotence, 
That  omnipresence,  that  omniscience,  Rome's, 
Might  beset  him,  to  cut  him  off  from  hope- 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX. 


173 


This  feeling  blindly  wrought  the  while  beneath, 

Like  struggling  earthquake,  to  unsettle  him ; 

Thus  weakened,  half  unconsciously,  his  will 

Fell  childlike-helpless  in  the  power  of  Paul. 

Now  fear  hath  torment,  and  to  Felix,  prey 

Of  fear  with  torment,  Paul  still  added  fear ; 

Perhaps  his  fear  intolerable  grown 

Might  save  the  sufferer  from  the  thing  he  feared  ! 

Paul  further  said  :  "  O  Felix,  Caesar's  sway 

Over  this  world,  inevitable  thus, 

Subduing  all,  is  yet  but  image  pale 

Of  the  supreme  dominion  absolute 

Which  to  Christ  Jesus  in  the  heaven  belongs. 

The  captives  of  the  emperor  need  but  wait 

Patient  a  while  and  sure  release  arrives  ; 

Since  death  at  least,  to  all,  or  soon  or  late, 

Comes,  one  escape  at  last  from  Caesar's  power, 

Who  owns  no  empire  in  that  world  beyond. 

But  of  that  world  beyond,  no  end,  no  bound, 

Whither  we  all  must  flee  in  fleeing  hence, 

Still  the  Lord  Christ  abides  eternal  King ; 

Death  is  but  door  to  realm  of  His  more  wide. 

Here,  the  sheathed  sword  of  His  avenging  ire 

\Vill  sometimes  touch,  undrawn,  with  blunted  edge, 


THE  EPtC  OF  PA  UL-  Book  VI. 


!  74 

The  wincing  conscience  of  the  wicked  man 

That  knows  himself  a  criminal  unjudged. 

Those  touches  are  the  mercy  of  the  Lord 

That  would  betimes  the  guilty  soul  alarm  ; 

Those  pains  of  conscience  are  the  smouldering  fires 

Which,  quenched  not  now  in  sin-atoning  blood, 

Will,  blown  to  fury,  by  and  by  burst  forth, 

And,  fuelled  of  the  substance  of  the  soul, 

That  cannot  moult  its  immortality, 

One  inextinguishable  vengeance  burn. 

"  *  Be  wise  now,  therefore,  O  ye  kings,  be  ye 
Instructed,  judges  of  the  earth  ;  '  so  God 
Cries  in  our  Scriptures  in  the  ears  of  men. 
'  Kiss  ye  the  Son,'  He  says,  '  in  homage  kiss 
The  Son  of  Mine  anointing,  Christ  the  Lord, 
Kiss  Him  lest  He  be  angry,  and  His  wrath 
Ready  to  be  enkindled  you  devour. 
But  in  the  living  scriptures  of  the  soul 
Itself,  the  holy  word  of  God  in  man, 
The  selfsame  admonition  beats  and  burns  — 
If  men  would  read  it  and  would  understand  ! 
The  raging  of  desire  not  satisfied, 
The  sickness  of  the  surfeit  of  desire, 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX.  175 

The  ravages  of  passion  uncontrolled, 
And  waste  of  being,  by  itself  consumed, 
To  bury  or  deface  what  else  were  fair  — 
Like  lava  spouted  from  the  crater's  mouth 
Of  the  volcano  burning  its  own  bowels 
To  belch  them  torrent  over  fertile  fields  - 
These  things,  O  Felix,  in  the  conscious  heart, 
Are  muffled  footfalls  of  oncoming  doom." 

Peculiar  commination  seemed  to  flame, 
Volcanic,  in  Paul's  manner  as  he  spoke. 
One  might  have  felt  the  figure  prophecy  - 
For  some  fulfilment  in  this  present  world 
Impending  to  be  symbol  of  his  thought  — 
His  likening  of  the  self-consuming  soul, 
Disgorging  desolation  round  about, 
To  a  volcano  its  own  entrails  burning, 
And  in  eruption  pouring  them  abroad  ; 
So  real,  so  living,  so  in  imminent  act, 
Paul's  speaking  made  his  fiery  simile. 
Drusilla,  when,  long  after,  with  her  son 
Agrippa,  born  to  Felix,  overwhelmed 
In  that  destruction  from  Vesuvius 
Which  under  ashen  rain  and  lava  flood 


?V 
/1  /M  *7Z.  Book  VI. 

Pompeii  rolled  with  Herculaneum, 

Like  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  whelmed  again  !  — 

Drusilla  then,  despairing,  for  one  fierce 

Fleet  instant  — instant  endless,  though  so  fleet  - 

Saw,  as  from  picture  branded  on  her  brain, 

Heard,  as  from  echo  hoarded  in  its  cells, 

The  very  image  of  the  speaker's  form, 

His  posture,  gesture,  features  in  their  play, 

These,  and  the  tones,  reliving,  of  the  voice 

Wherewith,  in  Csesarea  judgment-hall, 

He  fulmined,  yea,  as  if  this  self-same  wo  ! 


But  Paul,  no  pause,  immitigably  said  : 
"  Belshazzar,  Babylonian  king  of  old, 
Once  in  a  season  of  high  festival 
Held  in  his  palace  with  a  thousand  lords, 
Saw  visionary  fingers  of  a  hand 
Come  out  upon  the  palace  walls  and  write. 
Then  that  king's  countenance  was  changed  in  him, 
In  answer  to  the  trouble  of  his  thoughts; 
The  very  jointings  of  his  loins  were  loosed, 
And  his  knees,  shaken,  on  each  other  smote. 
In  language  that  he  did  not  understand, 
But  prophet  Daniel  told  the  sense  to  him, 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELJX.  177 

Belshazzar  had  his  own  swift  ruin  read. 
Thus,  O  lord  Felix,  in  our  hours  of  feast, 

Oft,    MENE,   MENE,  TEKEL,   UPHARSIN, 

Dread  warning  to  us  that  the  end  is  come, 

That  we  have  been  full  proved  and  wanting  found, 

That  now  our  vantage  must  another's  be  — 

Appalling  words  of  final  doom  from  God, 

In  lurid  letters  live  along  the  walls 

Of  the  soul's  pleasure-house  —  for  who  will  heed! 

Remorses,  doubts,  recoils,  forebodings,  fears, 

And  fearful  lookings  for  of  judgment  nigh, 

Previsions  flashed  on  the  prophetic  soul 

Refusing  to  be  hooded  not  to  see  — 

These  are  handwritings  on  the  wall  from  God; 

They,  syllabling  the  sentence  of  His  ire, 

Spell   MENE,   MENE,  TEKEL,   UPHARSIN, 

For  pleasure-lovers  lost  in  lust  and  pride. 
Well  for  Belshazzar,  if  betimes  he  heed  ! " 

Had  Felix  been  alone,  deep  in  the  dark, 
And  a  wide  waste  of  solitude  around, 
A  comfort  it  had  seemed  to  him  to  loose 
One  mighty  agitation  of  his  frame 
And  shiver  his  blood-curdling  terror  off ; 


j    g  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

Or,  in  one  wanton,  wild,  voluptuous  cry, 

Shriek  it  into  the  startled  universe. 

But,  seated  there  upon  his  throne  of  power, 

Drusilla  by  his  side  regarding  him, 

To  tremble,  like  a  culprit  being  judged,     £ 

Before  a  culprit  waiting  judgment !     He, 

With  last  resistant  agony  of  will, 

Kept  moveless  his  blanched  lips,  and  on  his  seat 

Sat  stricken  upright,  and  so  stared  at  Paul. 

There  Paul  stood  tranquil,  choosing  thunderbolts, 
And  this  the  thunderbolt  that  last  he  launched  : 
"  Hearken,  O  Felix.     In  the  clouds  of  heaven, 
Attended  by  the  angels  of  His  might, 
The  Lord  Christ  Jesus  I  behold  descend. 
The  trumpet  of  the  resurrection  sounds, 
And  sea  and  land  give  up  their  wakened  dead ; 
These  all  to  judgment  hasten  at  His  call: 
The  books  are  opened  and  the  witness  found  ; 
All  the  least  thoughts  of  men,  with  all  their  words 
And  deeds,  all  their  dumb  motions  of  desire, 
Their  purposes,  and  their  endeavors  all, 
Are  written  in  the  record  of  those  books. 
They  blaze  out  in  the  light  of  that  great  day. 


Book  VI.  PA  UL  BEFORE  FELIX. 


179 


Like  lightning,  fixed  from  fleeting,  on  the  sky  ; 

Deem  not  one  guilty  can  his  guilt  conceal. 

A  parting  of  the  evil  and  the  good ; 

The  good  at  His  right  hand  He  bids  sit  down, 

The  awful  Judge,  omnipotent  as  just; 

The  evil,  frowning,  bids  from  Him  depart. 

Swift,  them  departing  —  who  would  not  know  God, 

And  not  obey  the  gospel  of  His  Son  — 

He,  taking  vengeance,  follows  in  their  flight 

With  flaming  fire  and  dreadful  punishment, 

Destruction  everlasting  from  His  face, 

From  the  Lord's  face,  and  glory  of  His  power!" 

The  shudder  that  had  slept  uneasy  sleep 
Within  the  breast  of  Felix  lulling  it, 
Woke  startled  at  these  minatory  words 
Spoken  as  with  the  voice  of  God  by  Paul. 
That  couchant  shudder  from  its  ambush  broke, 
And  openly  ran  wantoning  over  all 
The  members  of  the  terror-stricken  man. 
But  the  cry  clamoring  in  him  for  escape, 
To  ease  the  anguish  of  his  mortal  fear, 
Felix  found  strength  to  modulate  to  this, 
In  forced  tones  uttered,  and  with  failing  breath  : 


l8o  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

"  Go  thy  way  this  time,  Paul ;  at  season  fit 
Hereafter  I  will  call  for  thee  again." 

The  soldier  duly  led  his  prisoner  out, 
And  Felix  was  full  easily  rid  of  Paul ; 
Of  Paul,  but  of  Paul's  haunting  presence  not. 
The  image  of  that  orator  in  chains, 
The  solemn  echo  of  the  words  he  spoke, 
Swam  before  Felix,  sounded  in  his  ears, 
So  real,  the  real  world  round  him  seemed  less  real. 

Drusilla,  to  her  discomposure,  found 
Her  husband  strangely  alien  from  his  spouse  ; 
The  blandishments  so  potent  with  him  late 
Lost  on  an  absent  or  repellent  mind. 
The  awe  of  Felix  under  Paul's  discourse 
She  had  remarked  with  unconcerned  surprise  • 
She  now  recalled  it  with  a  doubt,  a  fear. 
The  jealous  thought  woke  in  her  :  '  If  my  lord 
Should,  overwrought  in  conscience,  cast  me  off! 
What  byword  and  what  hissing  then  were  I, 
Stranded  and  branded  an  adulteress  ! 
I,  who  the  scion  of  a  kingly  house, 
Haughty  Antiochus  Epiphanes, 
Haughtily  spurned  as  suitor  for  my  hand, 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX.  181 

Because  he  would  not  for  my  sake  be  Jew  ; 
Who  wedded  then  Azizus,  eastern  king, 
Willing  to  win  me  at  the  price  I  fixed  ; 
Who  next  with  scandal  parted  from  his  bed, 
To  snatch  this  dazzle  of  a  Roman  spouse  - 
/to  be  now  by  him  flung  to  the  dogs  ! 
All  at  the  beck  of  an  apostate  Jew, 
Arraigned  a  culprit  at  his  judgment-bar  ! 
Drusilla,  rouse  thee,  say,  It  must  not  be! 
Drusilla,  arm  thee,  swear,  It  shall  not  be  !' 

She  summoned  straight   that   Cyprian   sorcerer 

who 

Had  played  the  pander's  part  between  herself 
And  Felix,  when  they  twain  at  first  were  brought 
In  guilt  together.      "  Simon,  know,"  she  said, 
"  I  with  cause  hate  this  Jewish  prisoner  Paul. 
He,  insolence  intolerable,  is  fain 
To  come  between  my  Roman  lord  and  me. 
Withstand  him,  and  undo  his  hateful  spell." 

"  His  hateful  spell,  O  stately  queen,  my  liege," 
Said  Simon,  "  I  far  rather  would  assay 
Unbinding  from  thy  spouse's  soul  enthralled, 
Than  him  withstand,  the  binder  of  that  spell, 


1 82  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

Meeting  him  face  to  face.     At  Paphos  once, 

Of  Cyprus,  Elymas,  a  master  mind 

In  magic  —  at  the  court  proconsular 

Of  Sergius  Paulus,  regent  of  the  isle, 

Wielding  great  power  —  withstood  this  self-same 

Paul. 

But  Paul  denounced  a  curse  deipotent 
Against  him,  and  forthwith  upon  his  eyes 
A  mist  fell  and  a  darkness,  that  he  walked 
Wandering  in  quest  of  one  to  lead  him,  late 
Redoubtable  magician,  by  the  hand. 
This  conjuration  on  the  conjurer, 
Himself  proconsul  Sergius  Paulus  saw, 
And,  overpowered  with  wonder  and  with  fear, 
Roman  and  governor  as  he  was,  became 
Fast  docile  dupe  and  devotee  to  Paul. 

"  Perhaps  indeed  there  was  a  cause  for  this 
Older  in  date  than  such  a  feat  of  Paul's. 
Long  years  before,  when  Paul  and  he  were  young, 
By  chance  they  fared  together  on  the  way 
Damascus-ward  out  of  Jerusalem, 
When,  nigh  Damascus,  of  a  sudden,  Paul 
On  Sergius  tried  a  novel  magic  trick. 


Book  VI.  r.iUL  UEFOliE  FELIX.  183 

In  broad  noon,  with  unclouded  sun  ablaze 

Above  him,  burning  all  that  tract  of  sand, 

He  (lashed  a  sheen  of  mimic  lightning  forth, 

With  stage  effect  of  thunder  overhead 

Muttering  words.      Thereon  as  dead  fell  Paul, 

Yet  to  that  unintelligible  voice 

From  heaven  intelligible  answer  made, 

Pretending  dialogue  with  some  unseen 

High  dweller  in  the  upper  air,  with  whom 

Colluding,  he  thenceforth  his  spells  of  power 

Might  surer,  deadlier,  fling  on  whom  he  would. 

Sergius  was  then  too  full  of  youth  to  yield  ; 

The  lusty  blood  in  him  fought  off  the  spell  ; 

But  somewhat  wrought  upon,  no  less,  was  he, 

And  secretly,  in  mind  and  will,  prepared 

To  fall  in  weaker  age  a  prey  to  Paul. 

A  potent  master  Paul  is  in  his  kind, 

Owning  some  secret  from  us  others  hid, 

That    makes    our    vaunts    against    him    void    and 

vain. 

I  would  not  needlessly  his  curse  provoke 
By  too  close  quarters  with  him  front  to  front. 
His  spell  on  Felix  I  may  hope  to  solve, 
Let  me  but  have  thy  husband  by  himself, 


1 84 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 


In  privileged  audience  safe  apart  from  Paul ; 
I  will  see  Felix,  but  Paul  let  me  shun." 

So  Simon  to  his  moody  master  went, 
And,  well  dispensing  with  preamble,  said : 
"  What  will  mine  excellent  lord  Felix  please 
Command  the  service  of  his  servant  in  ?  " 
"  Unbidden  thou  art  present,"  Felix  frowned. 
"  So  bidden  I  retire,"  the  mage  replied. 
"  Nay,  tarry,"  with  quick  wanton  veer  of  whim, 
Said  Felix,  "  tarry  and  declare  to  me, 
If  with  exertion  of  thy  skill  thou  canst, 
What  is  it  that  this  hour  perturbs  my  thought? 
Answer  me  that,  pretender  to  be  wise, 
Or  own  thy  weird  pretensions  nothing  worth. 
No  paltering,  no  evasion,  doubling  none 
In    ambiguity    like    oracle, 
But  instant,  honest,  simple,  true  reply  ; 
Else,  I  have  done  with  all  thy  trumpery  tricks, 
Haply,  too,  with  some  certain  fruits  thereof 
That  thee  buy  little  thanks,  as  me  small  joy." 

11  My  master  pleases  to  make  hard  demand, 
In  couple  with  condition  hard,  to-day," 
The  sorcerer,  with  dissembled  pleasure,  said. 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORF.  FELIX. 

Simon  full  ready  felt  to  meet  his  test ; 

For,  in  an  antechamber  to  the  hall 

Of  judgment,  he,  with  Shimei  too,  had  lurked, 

And,  overhearing  Paul's  denouncement,  marked 

The  trepidation  of  the  judge's  mien. 

"  Lord  Felix  suffers  from  an  evil  spell 

Cast  on  him  by  a  wicked  conjurer;  " 

So,  with  deep  calculation  of  effect, 

The  sorcerer  to  the  sovereign  firmly  said. 

"  A  hit  —  perhaps,"  said  Felix,  some  relief 

Of  tension  to  his  conscience-crowded  mind 

Welcoming  already  in  the  hint  conveyed  ; 

"  Repeat  to  me,"  he  added,  keen  to  hear, 

"  Repeat  to  me  the  phrasing  of  the  spell  ; 

That  I  may  know  it  not  a  groping  guess, 

But  certain  knowledge,  what  thou  thus  hast  said. 

That  challenge  flung  to  Simon's  hand  the  clue 
He  needed  for  his  guidance  in  the  maze. 
He  sees  the  Roman's  superstitious  mind 
In  grapple  with  imaginative  awe 
Infused  by  recollection  of  those  words 
Barbaric  —  of  comminatory  sound, 
Though  understood  not,  therefore  dreaded  more 


!  86  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

Which  Paul,  two  several  times,  in  his  discourse, 

Had  solemnly  recited  in  his  ear. 

"The  spell,"  he  said,  "  O  Felix,  that  enthralls 

Thee  was  of  three  Chaldsean  words  composed  ; 

But  one  word  was  repeated,  making  four. 

I  dare  not  utter  those  dire  syllables 

In  the  fixed  order  which  creates  the  spell. 

My  wish  is  to  undo,  and  not  to  bind." 

Felix  was  frightened,  like  a  little  child 
Told  ghostly  stories  in  the  dead  of  night ; 
He  watched  and  waited,  with  set  eye  intense. 
The  conjurer,  standing  in  struck  attitude, 
Made  with  his  voice  an  inarticulate  sign 
Intoned  in  tone  to  thrill  the  listening  blood. 
Thereon,  in  silence,  through  the  opening  door, 
With  gliding  motion,  a  familiar  stole 
Into  the  chamber,  which  now  more  and  more, 
To  Felix's  impressionable  fears, 
As  if  a  vestibule  to  Hades  was. 
That  noiseless  minister  to  Simon  gave 
Into  his  master's  hand  a  rod  prepared. 
"  Hearken,  lord  Felix,"  low  the  conjurer  said, 
"  Hearken  and  heed.     Well  needs  it  thou,  with  me, 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX.  j 

Fail  now  in  nothing  through  a  mind  remiss. 
Hear  thou  aright,  while  I  aright  reverse 
The  order  of  the  phrasing  of  that  spell. 
Beware  thou  think  it  even  no  otherwise 
Than  as  I  give  it,  weighing  word  and  word. 
I  turn  the  sentence  end  for  end  about, 

UPHARSIN,  TEKEL,   MENE,   MENE,  Say  j 

All  is  not  done,  still  keep  thy  mind  intent, 

And,  with  thine  eyes  now,  as  erst  with  thine  ears, 

Watch  what  I  do,  and  let  thy  will  consent." 

Therewith  his  wizard  wand  he  waved  in  air, 
As  who  wrote  viewless  words  upon  the  wind. 
A  hollow  reed  the  wand  he  wielded  was, 
With  secret  seed  asleep  of  fire  enclosed. 
This,  at  the  end  that  in  his  hand  he  held  ; 
Powder  of  sulphur  at  the  other  end 
Was  hidden  in  the  hollow  of  the  reed. 
The  sulphur  and  the  fire,  unconscious  each 
Of  other,  had,  though  neighboring,  since  apart, 
Slept ;  for  the  sorcerer's  minion  brought  the  rod, 
As  first  the  sorcerer  held  it,  levelled  true. 
But  with  the  motion  of  the  magian's  hand, 
The  clipping  virgule  sent  the  ember  down 


1 88  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 

The  polished  inner  of  its  chamber-walls, 

And  breath  let  in  to  blow  it  living  red, 

Until  it  touched  the  sulphur  at  the  tip. 

Issue  of  fume  there  followed,  edged  with  flame, 

And  wafting  pungent  odor  from  the  vent, 

Which,  woven  in  circlet  and  in  crescent,  seemed 

To  knit  a  melting  legend  on  the  air. 

"So  vanish  and  be  not,  thou  hateful  spell, 

And  leave  this  late  so  vexed  spirit  free  !" 

With  mutter  of  which  words,  the  sorcerer  turned 

To  Felix,  and  thus  farther  spoke:  "  Breathe  thou, 

Lord  Felix,  from  that  bond  emancipate. 

Yet,  that  thou  fall  not  unawares  again 

Beneath  its  power,  use  well  a  countercharm 

I  give  thee,  which,  both  night  and  day,  wear  thou 

A  prophylactic  to  thy  menaced  mind. 

Gold  —  let  the  thought,  the  motive,  the  desire, 

The  purpose,  and  the  fancy,  and  the  dream, 

Not  leave  thee  nor  forsake  thee  till  thou  die. 

The  sight,  the  sound,  the  touch,  the  clutch,  of  gold 

Is  sovereign  absolution  to  a  soul 

Beset  like  thine  with  fear  of  things  to  be 

Beyond  the  limit  of  this  mortal  state  ; 

But,  failing  that,  the  thought  itself  will  serve. 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX.  189 

The  thought  at  least  must  -never  absent  be, 
If  thou  wouldst  live  a  freeman  in  thy  mind." 

'  Freedman,'  he  would  have  said,  but  did  not  dare  ; 
He  had  dared  much  already  in  his  word, 
'  Freeman,'  so  nigh  overt  allusion  glanced 
At  the  opprobrious  quality  of  slave, 
Out  of  which  Felix  sprang  to  be  a  king. 
To  that,  contempt  and  hatred  of  a  lord 
Served  but  from  hard  self-interest  and  from  fear 
Had  irresistibly  pressed  Simon  on 
Beyond  the  bound  of  calculated  speech. 
Therewith,  and  waiting  not  dismissal,  both, 
The  sorcerer  and  his  minion,  silently 
Slid  out  of  presence,  and  left  Felix  there 
To  rally  as  he  might  to  his  true  self. 
But,  not  too  trustful  to  his  sorcery, 
Simon  thought  well  to  follow  and  confirm 
The  influence  won  on  Felix  through  his  art, 
With  worldly  wisdom  suited  to  his  end. 
He  bade  Drusilla  open  all  access 
Ever  for  Shimei  to  her  husband's  ear, 
And  even  from  her  own  treasure  help  him  ply 
Felix's  avid  mind  with  hope  of  gold  — 


i  go 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI. 


Assured  to  him  through  earnest  oft  in  hand  — 

An  ample  guerdon  in  due  time  to  come 

From  Paul's  rich  friends  to  buy  release  for  Paul. 

At  Caesarea,  in  the  judgment  hall 
That  day,  a  solemn  crisis  of  his  life, 
To  Felix,  he  not  knowing,  there  had  passed. 
Successfully,  with  sad  success !  he  had 
Resisted  conscience  in  her  last  attempt, 
Her  last  and  greatest,  to  alarm  a  soul 
Sufficiently  to  save  it  from  itself. 
At  length,  with  the  still  process  of  the  days 
Dulled,  and  besides  with  opiate  medicines  drugged. 
That  conscience,  so  resisted,  sank  asleep, 
Sank  dead  asleep  in  Felix,  to  awake 
Never  again.     He  indeed  sent  for  Paul 
Afterward  oft,  and  talked  with  him  at  large  ; 
But  always  only  in  that  sordid  hope  — 
Blown  to  fresh  flame  with  seasonable  breath, 
That  never  failed,  from  Shimei,  prompt  in  watch 
To  play  on  his  cupidity  —  the  hope 
Of  princely  ransom  from  his  prisoner  won. 

Such  hope,  so  kept  alive,  led  this  bad  man  — 
Although  he  hated  Paul  for  shaking  him 


Book  VI.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX. 

To  terror,  and  to  open  shameful  show 
Of  terror,  in  his  very  pitch  of  pride  - 
To  palter  with  his  prisoner,  month  by  month, 
Until  the  end  came  of  his  long  misrule. 
Then,  hope  deferred,  defeated  hope  at  last, 
Let  loose  the  hatred  that  in  leash  had  lain 
Of  avarice,  in  the  kennel  of  that  breast, 
And  Felix  found  a  sullen  feast  for  it 
In  leaving  Paul  at  Caesarea  bound. 


BOOK    VII. 

TO     C  AL  S  A  R .  " 


Paul,  in  preferred  alternative  to  being  judged,  as  was 
proposed,  by  his  murderous  fellow-countrymen,  appeals  to 
Caesar.  He  is  in  consequence  embarked  on  a  ship  for 
Rome.  With  him  sail  certain  kindred  and  friends  of  his, 
young  Stephen  among  them.  Fellow- voyagers  with  him  are 
also  Felix  and  Drusilla,  fallen  now  from  power  and  under 
cloud  at  Rome.  Shimei  and  Simon  the  sorcerer  are  of  the 
company.  The  voyage  is  described,  together  with  some  of 
the  notable  prospects  of  the  coasts  along  which  the  vessel 
sails.  Shimei  plots  against  the  life  of  Paul.  His  plot  is 
thwarted  by  young  Stephen,  and  the  culprit  is  thrown  into 
dungeon  in  the  hold  under  chains. 


"TO   CyESAR." 

During  the  years  of  his  captivity 
Under  that  wanton  hand  at  Csesarea, 
Paul's  sister,  with  her  Stephen,  brought  their  home 
Thither,  and  there  abode,  for  love  of  Paul ; 
That  they  might  minister  to  him,  and  be 
Ministered  to  by  him  in  overflow 
Of  his  far  more  exceeding  rich  reward. 
Thither  came  also  others  of  the  Way, 
Drawn  by  like  love,  to  serve  the  same  desire. 

Of  these  was  martyr  Stephen's  widow,  Ruth, 
A  stately  lady,  with  the  matron's  crown 
Of  glory  in  her  wealth  of  silver  hair, 
And  with  the  invisible  pure  aureole 
Of  living  saintship  radiant  round  her  brow. 
With  her,  a  daughter,  left  to  Ruth  alone 
Among  her  children  —  wedded  all  beside. 
Her  youngest-born,  and  fairest,  was  this  one, 
Eunice  named  ;  a  gift  from  God  to  Ruth 
After  her  husband's  martyrdom  bestowed. 


196 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VII. 


Eunice  bore  her  father's  image,  lined 
Softer  with  girlhood  and  with  yielding  youth, 
Both  in  her  features  and  her  character. 
The  light  that  in  her  lovely  countenance 
Shone  lovelier,  was  not  playful,  did  not  flash, 
But  sat  there  tempered  to  an  equal  beam, 
Selene-like,  that  one  might  look  upon, 
From  far  or  near,  dwelling  however  long, 
With  sense  of  rest  and  healing  to  the  eye  ; 
You  seemed  to  gaze  upon  the  evening  star 
In  sole  possession  of  a  twilight  sky. 
It  was  as  if  the  father's  zeal  intense  — 
Which,  kindling  on  his  way  to  martyrdom, 
Shone  into  brightness  dazzling  like  the  sun- 
Descended  to  the  daughter,  were  suffused 
So,  and  so  qualified,  with  woman's  love, 
That  it  undazzling  like  the  moon  became. 
Eunice,  such  in  queenly  womanhood, 
Already  to  young  Stephen  was  betrothed  ; 
They  waited  only  till  the  years  should  bring 
Full  ripeness,  with  meet  circumstance,  to  wed. 

Mary  of  Magdala  kinswoman  was 
To  Ruth.     She,  long  afflicted,  from  before 


Book  VII.  "TO  C/-..V./A'." 


197 


Her  marriageable  season,  with  the  haunt 

In  her  of  evil  spirits  vagabond 

From  the  abyss,  had,  then  to  woman  grown, 

Met  Jesus  in  His  rounds  of  doing  good 

And  been  by  Him  delivered  from  her  woe. 

Seven  demons,  at  His  word,  went  forth  from  her, 

Foul  inmates  of  a  mansion  passing  fair. 

Mary  to  her  Divine  Deliverer  gave 

Her  life  thenceforth  one  long  oblation  up. 

With  other  women,  like  herself  in  love 

Of  Him,  she  followed  that  Immanuel 

Whithersoever  He  went  about  the  world, 

And  of  her  treasure  lavished  on  His  need. 

She  stood  bewailing  when  they  crucified 

Her  Lord,  and,  after,  at  His  sepulcher 

The  earliest,  ere  the  breaking  of  the  morn, 

Saw  two  fair-shining  angels  clothed  in  white, 

One  at  the  head,  the  other  at  the  feet, 

Sit  where  the  body  of  the  Lord  had  lain. 

These  talked  with  Mary,  who  then  turning  saw, 

But  knew  not,  Jesus,  face  to  face  with  her. 

But  Jesus  to  the  weeping  woman  said  : 

"  Mary  !  "  and,  in  the  hearing  of  her  name, 

She  forthwith  knew  the  voice  that  uttered  it. 


198  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VII. 

In  her  delight  of  love,  she  would  have  touched 

His  person,  to  assure  still  more  her  mind, 

Save  that  again  that  voice,  forestalling,  gave 

Enough  assurance  for  such  faith  as  hers. 

Mary  refrained  her  hand,  but  full  well  knew 

No  fleeting  phantom,  no  dissolving  show, 

No  spirit  only,  angel  of  the  dead, 

Stood  there  before  her  in  the  form  of  Him  ; 

But  her  Lord  Christ  Himself,  His  flesh  and  blood. 

This  Mary  Magdalene,  in  such  wise 
First  to  such  joy  delivered  from  such  woe, 
Then  witness  of  so  much  theophany, 
Thenceforward  lived,  unwedded  to  the  end, 
A  life  of  watching  for  her  Lord's  return, 
True  to  His  promise,  in  the  clouds  of  heaven  ; 
Not  idle  watching,  watching  unto  prayer 
And  unto  almsdeeds  to  His  glory  done. 
In  the  due  sequel  of  the  days,  she  came, 
Bidden  by  her  kinswoman  Ruth,  to  share 
Her  widow's  home  with  her  and  help  her  peace. 
Thus  then,  the  much-experienced  Mary,  meek 
With  wisdom  and  with  holy  meekness  wise 
(Her  sorrow  all  to  cheerful  patience  turned) 


Book  VII.  "TO   CJ5SAJR."  199 

Unnoticed,  not  unfelt,  as  light,  as  strength 

Unconscious,  from  the  Source  of  strength,  of  light 

Daily  renewed,  for  guidance  and  support 

To  all  within  her  happy  neighborhood  - 

She  also,  Mary  Magdalene,  came 

To  Caesarea,  yoked  in  fellowship 

With  Ruth  and  Rachel,  ministrant  to  Paul. 

These  all,  with  others,  still  intent  to  ease, 
If  but  by  sharing,  what  to  Paul  befell, 
Were  minded  to  go  with  him  even  to  Rome  — 
When  Festus,  following  Felix  dispossessed, 
Sent  Paul  away  to  Caesar's  judgment-seat, 
Fulfilling  so  the  wretched  Shimei's  fear. 
For — Festus  asking  Paul  (accused  afresh 
Before  him  from  Jerusalem  by  Jews 
Afresh  to  hope  reviving  with  the  change 
From  Felix  to  a  different  rulership): 
"Wilt  thou  hence  go  unto  Jerusalem, 
And  there  by  thine  own  countrymen  be  judged  ?"  — 
The  wary  wise  apostle,  well  forewarned 
Touching  the  deadly  ambush,  to  waylay 
Him  in  the  journey  thither,  set  once  more 
By  Shimei,  desperate  and  forlorn,  had  said : 


200  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VII. 

"  I  am  a  prisoner  at  the  judgment-bar 

Of  Caesar ;  to  my  countrymen  have  I 

No  wrong  done,  as  thou  knowest ;  if  any  crime 

Be  mine,  if  I  have  perpetrated  deed 

Worthy  of  death,  I  do  not  shun  to  die. 

But  if  of  such  act  I  be  innocent, 

Then  no  man  may  to  them  deliver  me. 

Roman  am  I,  to  Caesar  I  appeal." 

That  answer  was  as  word  omnipotent, 

To  be  unsaid,  gainsaid,  resisted,  never ; 

And  Festus  was  its  servant  and  its  thrall. 

There  sailed  a  ship  of  Adramyttium 
(In  Mysia  of  the  Asian  Province  west, 
From  Lesbos  in  a  deep  recess  withdrawn 
Of  bay  in  the  ^Egean,  neighboring  Troy) 
Which  touched  at  Caesarea  in  its  course 
Coastwise,  now  northing  on  the  Syrian  shore. 
Festus  on  board  this  vessel  quartered  Paul, 
With  soldiers  to  convoy  him  safe  to  Rome ; 
A    maniple,    by   a   centurion 
Commanded,  Julius  named,  a  Roman  he 
Worthy  of  the  imperial  name  he  bore. 
For  he  of  clement  grace  was  capable, 


Book  VII.  "7'6>    CsESAR."  2OI 

And  of  sagacity  to  know  a  man, 

Though  of  despised  race  and  charged  with  crime, 

And,  knowing,  yield  to  him  his  manhood's  claim. 

Julius  the  profit  of  his  virtue  reaped ; 

He,  in  the  issue  of  that  voyage,  will 

Through  favoring  Paul  save  his  own  soul  alive. 

Those  kin  and  lovers  of  the  prisoner,  who 
Had  for  his  name  to  Csesarea  come, 
Would  not  forsake  him  sailing  thence  away ; 
They  all,  in  one  accord  of  fellowship, 
Willed  to  sail  with  him  on  his  way  to  Rome. 
Besides  these,  there  was  Luke,  a  loyal  soul, 
Well  learned  in  the  lore  of  medicine, 
Who  loved  Paul,  and  with  joy  his  right  hand  lent, 
Joining  thereto  the  service  of  his  eyes, 
To  fix  for  the  apostle,  at  his  need, 
In  written  record,  his  thick-coming  thoughts - 
Ease  for  those  weary  organs  overworn 
With  labors  and  with  watchings  ;  haply,  too, 
Touched  with  effect  from  that  excess  of  light ! 
Historian  of  the  voyage  likewise  Luke, 
As,  guided  by  the  heavenly-guided  Paul, 
Who  thus  redeemed  long  prison  hours  else  waste, 


202  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VII. 

Historian  of  the  life  of  Christ  the  Lord. 

So  many,  with  a  man  from  Macedon, 

A  faithful,  Aristarchus  named,  made  up 

The  little  company  who  loving  hearts 

Linked,  shield  to  shield,  in  phalanx  fencing  Paul. 

If  they  could  serve  him  little  on  the  sea, 

At  least  they  could  be  with  him  there ;  and  then, 

Should  long  delays  of  law,  or  of  caprice, 

Hold  him  still  bound  in  Rome,  they  would  be  nigh 

To  bring  him,  daily,  comfort  of  their  love. 

So,  doubting  not,  not  fearing,  all  for  love, 

These  changed  their  fixed  gear  for  portable, 

And  on  that  ship  of  Adramyttium, 

Facing  whatever  fortune  unforeseen, 

Cheerfully  sailed  —  to  tempest  and  to  wreck! 

Scarce  well  bestowed  within  that  Asian  bark, 
Riding  at  anchor  in  her  rock-fenced  haven, 
Those  Christian  pilgrims  felt  unwonted  stir 
Rouse  round  them  on  the  crowded  deck,  with  surge 
On  surge  of  movement,  of  expectancy, 
As  when  a  rising  surf  beats  the  sea-beach  ; 
While,  huddling  here,  here  parting,  all  made  way 
To  let  who  seemed  high  passengers  of  state 


Book  VII.  "TO    C&SARr  203 

Enter  with  gorgeous  pomp  and  pageantry, 

Forerun  and  followed  by  a  various  train. 

Felix  it  was,  in  sumptuous  litter  borne, 

Drusilla  with  him,  looking  still  the  queen  : 

From  power  they  fallen,  were  fallen  not  from  pride 

With  them,  besides  their  troop  of  servitors, 

Came  other  two,  strange  contrasts  :  Simon  one, 

The  conjurer,  fast  to  their  joint  fortune  bound, 

Beginning  to  be  gray  with  rime  of  age, 

As  sinister  grown  in  look  through  habit  of  guile  ; 

A  little  lad  tripped  lightly  by  the  side 

Of  Simon  (who  his  evil  genius  looked) 

Leading  him  by  the  hand  upon  the  ship. 

This  little  lad  was  little  Felix,  son 

Of  Felix  and  Drusilla,  and  dear  to  them, 

Felix  Agrippa  the  lad's  double  name. 

Felix  went  summoned  from  his  province  back 

To  give  at  Rome  account  of  his  misrule. 

Behind  the  sorcerer,  following  in  that  train, 

Went  last,  as  one  who  unattached  would  seem, 

Shimei,  compelled,  though  prisoner  not  ;  he  strove 

To  carry  lightly  a  too  heavy  heart. 

Felix  so  much  from  Festus  had  obtained, 

That  Shimei  should  go  forward  with  himself 


204  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  Book 

As  witness  and  accuser  both  to  Paul ; 
Yet  sinister  suspicion  shadowing  him, 
With  information  laid  against,  the  while, 
As  the  ringleader  in  a  plot  of  crime. 
The  unhappy  legate  would  at  least  detach 
Thus  from  his  own  leagued  Jewish  foes,  the  Jew, 
The  one  Jew,  who,  best  knowing  and  hating  him, 
With  the  least  scruple  the  most  genius  joined 
To  crowd  him  falling,  to  the  farthest  fall. 

Fairly  the  lading  and  unlading  done, 
And  all  things  ready,  the  good  ship  puts  forth. 
The  oarsmen  sat  in  triple  ranks  that  rose 
Tier  above  tier  along  the  vessel's  side  ; 
With  cheer  of  voice  that  timed  their  rhythmic  stroke, 
They,  all  together,  many-handed,  bent 
Over  the  supple  oars,  well-hung  arow, 
And  beat  the  waters  into  yeast  and  foam. 
The  wieldy  trireme  answered  to  their  will, 
And,  past  the  towers  and  domes  of  Caesarea, 
Along  a  windless  way  under  the  lee 
Of  sea-walls  fending  from  the  bluff  southwest, 
Pushed  to  the  north  beyond  the  harbor-mouth. 
Here  the  wind  took  her,  freshening  from  behind, 


Book  VII.  "TO    C&SAR."  205 

And,  sail  all  set,  they  rested  from  the  oar. 

Softly  and  swiftly,  with  such  favoring  gal<\ 

They  prosper,  and,  along-  the  storied  coast 

Close  cruising,  soon  discern  the  headland  height, 

Mount  Carmel,  with  his  excellency  crowned 

Of  forest,  and  wide  overlooking  east 

The  plain  outrolled  of  great  Esdraelon 

Washing  with  waves  of  green  the  mountain's  feet  — 

Mountain  whereon,  in  single-handed  proof, 

Elijah  those  four  hundred  priests  of  Baal 

Gave  to  contempt ;  and,  whence  descending,  he, 

Red  with  indignant  wrath  for  his  Lord  God, 

By  the  brook  Kishon  slew  them  to  His  name. 

This  Paul  remembered,  as  he  passed  ;  and  deemed 

He  saw,  hallowing  the  hills  of  Nazareth, 

A  halo  from  the  childhood  of  the  Lord. 

From  horn  to  horn  across  a  crescent  bay, 

Embosomed  by  its  arc  of  shore  that  curved 

From  Carmel  round  to  Ptolemais  north, 

Faring,  they  could,  well  inland  gazing,  catch 

A  glimpse  that  vanished  of  the  shapely  cone 

Of  Tabor  soaring  in  his  Syrian  blue. 

Still  onward,  they  next  day  the  ancient  seat 

Of  famous  Sidon  in  Phoenicia  reached  — 


206  THE  EPIC  OP  PA  UL.  Book  VII. 

Long  ruined  now,  with  her  twin  city  Tyre  ; 
Then,  paired  with  her  as  mistress  of  the  main, 
Sidon  sat  leaning  on  her  promontory, 
Diffused  along  its  northward-sliding  slopes, 
Like  a  luxurious  queen  on  her  divan. 
Her  sailors  drove  her  keels  to  every  haven, 
And  fetched  her  home  the  spoil  of  every  clime. 
To  Farthest  Thule  was  the  ocean  wave 
White  with  her  sails  or  spumy  to  her  oars. 

Felix's  hope  of  splendid  bribe  from  Paul 
Was  brighter,  that,  of  those  who  brought  him  cheer 
In  prison,  some  from  wealthy  Sidon  came. 
Here  the  ship  touching,  Julius,  of  his  grace, 
Granted  to  Paul  the  freedom  of  the  shore. 
With  grateful  gladness  there,  Sidonian  friends, 
Women  and  men,  with  children,  welcome  him. 
Full  in  mid-winter,  lo,  a  moment's  spring  ! 
So  did  a  sudden-blossomino-  scene  of  home 

o 

Smile  briefly  bright  about  this  homeless  man, 
This  prisoner  of  the  Lord  —  for  the  Lord's  sake, 
And  for  his  own  sake,  dear  —  most  human  heart  ! 
In  whom  his  office  of  apostle  wrought 
To  heighten,  not  to  hurt,  the  faculty, 


Book  VII.  "TO 


207 


As  it  left  whole  the  lovely  need,  of  love. 

He  went  thence  clothed  upon  the  more  with  sense 

Of  love  his  from  so  many,  like  a  shield 

Barring  his  heart  from  harm  ;  and  in  his  heart 

Love  buoyant  more  to  bear  what  harm  must  fall. 

From  Sidon  sailing,  they,  still  northward  driven 
By  wind  that  would  not  let  them  as  they  wished 
Southwestward  to  the  south  of  Cyprus  isle 
Win  with  right  way  the  Mysian  port,  their  aim  — 
So  hindered,  those  Greek  seamen  warp  their  wake 
With  zigzag  steering  over  whitening  waves, 
Until  they  feel  that  current  of  the  sea, 
Northwestward  with  perpetual  ocean-stream 
Washing  the  Cyprian  shore  to  easternmost, 
Thence  veering  toward  the  mainland,  and  along 
The  Asian  border  drawing  to  the  west. 
There,  on  such  river  in  the  ocean  borne 
Whither  they  will  against  a  wind  adverse, 
They,  wise  with  much  experience  of  the  sea, 
Yet  in  the  lee  of  neighboring  Cyprus  seek 
A  pathway  sheltered  from  that  roughening  wind. 
So,  forward  fairly,  the  Cilician  sea 
They  traverse,  with  the  mountains  on  their  left, 


208 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VII. 


Sheer  through  the  length  of  sunny  Cyprus  drawn, 
Building  a  sea-wall,  to  break  off  the  wind. 
Over  against,  to  be  descried,  though  far  — 
Well  by  two  hearts  on  board  that  vessel  felt, 
Paul  and  his  sister  Rachel  —  to  the  north, 
Lay  the  long  reach  of  the  Cilician  shore. 
Those  (thither  strained^their  homeward-yearning 

eyes) 

There,  tearful,  saw  remembered  Taurus  tower  ; 
Whence  river  Cydnus  rushing  snow-cold  down, 
Wild  from  his  mountain  to  the  stretched-out  plain, 
Tames  him  his  torrent  to  a  pace  more  even  ; 
And  yields  to  be  a  navigable  stream 
For  Tarsus,  cleft  two-fold,  upon  his  banks, 
A  seaboard  city  inland  from  the  sea, 

Dear  places  of  the  playtime  of  their  youth ! 
Gray  river,  with  its  everlasting  flood, 
Libation  from  the  mountain  to  the  sea; 
The  wharves,  the  ships,  the  sailors,  travelled  men, 
Motley  in  garb  and  polyglot  in  speech ; 
The  lading  landed  or  to  be  embarked  — 
Mysterious  bales  of  costly  merchandise 
Tempting  to  guess  what  treasures  might  be  there !  — 


Book  VII.  "TO    C/ESAR" 

The  hallowed  sabbath  in  that  Hebrew  home 

Islanded  in  its  sea  of  heathenism  ! 

The  sabbath  seasons  in  the  synagogue  ! 

The  reverend  Scriptures  of  the  Jewish  law, 

By  father  and  by  mother  taught  to  them, 

So  diligently  taught,  day  after  day, 

And  talked  of  in  their  ears,  alike  when  they 

Sat  in  their  house  and  when  they  walked  abroad, 

And  when  they  laid  them  down  and  when  they 

rose  ; 

Beheld  too  for  a  sign  bound  on  the  hand, 
Likewise  for  frontlets  worn  between  the  eyes  !  — 
All  these  things  like  a  flood-tide  of  the  sea 
Swelled  on  those  homesick  kindred  hearts,  while 

they, 

Brother  and  sister,  distant  many  years 
From  what  they  saw,  from  what  much  more  they 

felt, 

Seen  or  unseen,  on  that  familiar  shore, 
Alien  and  heathen,  yet,  being  native,  sweet, 
Lapsed  into  musing  of  the  pensive  past. 
Half  they  in  words,  but  half  in  silence,  mused. 

"  Far-off  by  years,  yet  more  by  difference  far," 


209 


2io  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VI i. 

Said  Paul  to  Rachel,  "  are  we  two  withdrawn 
From  what  we  were  in  our  Cilician  home. 
That  dearer  is  to  us  to  dream  of  so, 
Remembering  and  imagining,  than  it  were 
To  see  ;  it  is  not  what  we  knew  it  once, 
With  the  child's  heart  we  carried  in  us  then. 
We  should  not  find  the  places  that  we  loved  ; 
Nay,  for  we  should  not  know  them  —  with  these 

eyes. 
They  have  not  so  much  changed,  but  we  have 

changed." 

"  Yea,  doubtless,  changed  we  are,"  Rachel  replied  ; 
"  Yet,  I  at  least,  O  Saul,  not  so  much  changed 
But  that  it  would  delight  me  still  to  see 
Those  haunts  of  happy  childhood  —  more  endeared 
To  me,  as  to  my  brother  more,  I  know, 
From  father's  and  mother's  memory  hovering  there. 
I  loved  my  mother  and  I  honored  her, 
But  my  own  motherhood  has  taught  me  how 
I  might  have  better  loved  and  honored  her!" 

"  We  must  not  at  past  failures  vainly  pine  "  — 
So  Paul,  to  Rachel  sorrowing  tenderly  — 
"  But  rather  let  them  make  us  wiser  now. 


Book  VII.  "TO    C&SAR."  211 

Thy  lesson,  sister,  let  it  teach  us  both 

How  to  be  children  to  our  Father  God. 

These  earthly  kinships  all  are  parable 

Of  the  enduring  kinships  of  the  skies. 

We  are  to  be  to  God,  as  children  dear, 

What  parents  would  their  children  were  to  them, 

So  full  of  love  with  fear,  of  trust  with  heed, 

And  imitators  of  His  heavenly  ways." 

"  And  is  it,  brother,"  Rachel  gently  asked, 
"  Indeed  to  thee  so  easy  ever  thus 
To  lose  the  earthly  in  the  heavenly  thought, 
And  in  the  symbol  find  the  symbolized, 
That  only,  Saul  ?     It  is  not  so  with  me. 
I  love  the  letter,  and  I  cling  to  it  — 
A  little ;  at  least  when  it  is  so  fair 
As  I  have  found  it  in  my  motherhood. 
The  spirit  is  far  fairer,  I  suppose, 
But  God  has  made  this  letter  '  very  good  '  !  " 

Rachel  spoke  thus  with  deprecation  sweet, 
The  while  a  little  liquid  sparkle  played 
Of  loving  humor  in  her  eyes  half  turned 
Toward  Stephen  sitting  nigh  them  but  apart ; 
He  and  Eunice  sat  together  there. 


2  i  2  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VII. 

"  Cling  to  thy  lovely  letter,"  Paul  replied, 
"  '  A  little,'  as  thou  sayest  it,  not  too  much  — 
The  'little,'  as  the  '  not  too  much,'  God's  will 
For  thee,  my  sister ;  and,  a  paradox  ! 
The  little  will  be  more  when  not  too  much. 
It  is  the  spirit  makes  the  letter  dear, 
Or  dearest,  as  it  is  itself  more  dear. 
We  better  love  the  earthly  images 
Of  things  in  heaven,  when  we  those  heavenly  things 
Themselves  more  than  their  loveliest  shadows  love." 

"O  brother,"  Rachel  —  suddenly  her  voice 
Sunk  to  a  vibrant  low  intensity 
Of  accent  —  said,  hands  clasped  and  eyes  upturned 
To  him,  "  O  brother,  when  such  things  thou  sayest, 
I  tremble  with  unspeakable  desire 
To  be  what  one  must  be  to  think  such  things. 
But  it  is  all  too  wonderful  for  me. 
That  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
Whereby  thou  knowest  what  else  thou  wouldst  not 

know  — 
Perhaps  that  helps  thee  be,  as  well  as  know?" 

"  Nay,  sister,"  Paul  replied,  "  it  is  not  so. 
That  inspiration  is  a  gift  to  me 


Book  VII.  "TO    CJ'.SAR."  213 

For  knowing  only,  not  for  being.     Yea, 

And  even  my  gift  to  know  is  not  for  me, 

More  than  for  thee,  my  Rachel,  and  for  all. 

It  is  that  all  may  know,  God  makes  me  know. 

I  profit  by  my  awful  trust  from  God 

Of  farther  vision  in  His  mysteries, 

Only  as  I  a  faithful  steward  am 

To  part  to  others  what  I  hold  from  Him  : 

Freely  I  have  received  freely  to  give. 

But  besides  this  there  is  a  grace  of  God 

In  Jesus  by  the  Holy  Spirit  given, 

That  comes  alike  to  all  obedient  souls 

To  help  them  in  the  life  of  holiness. 

The  habit  of  the  heavenly  mind  which  thou 

Attributest  to  me  in  what  thou  askest, 

This  I  have  learned,  if  it  indeed  be  mine, 

By  being  to  the  Spirit  teachable, 

Who  teaches  all  as  fast  as  each  will  learn. 

He  could  far  faster  teach  us,  and  He  would, 

If  only  we  were  teachable  enough. 

Alas,  we  strangely  hold  the  flood-gate  down 

Not  to  let  all  the  waiting  fulness  in. 

But  what  of  holy  willingness  I  have 

He  gives,  Who  worketh  in  me  both  to  will 


2I4  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL,  Book  VII. 

And  work,  for  the  good  pleasure  of  His  name." 

"  Amen  !  "  breathed  Rachel,  in  devout  accord 
With  Paul's  ascription  of  all  good  to  Him. 

By  this,  the  night  had  settled  on  the  sea, 
An  interlunar  night  bereft  of  stars, 
For  the  dark  azure  of  the  deep  was  black 
To  blackness  of  the  overhanging  heaven 
Hung  thick  with   clouds.      "  See,"   Rachel  added 

soon, 

"  How  the  sky  lowers  !    God  fend  us  all  from  storm ! 
Good  night,  my  brother.      David's  word  for  me, 
'  In  peace  will  I  both  lay  me  down  and  sleep, 
For  Thou,  Lord,  only  makest  me  to  dwell 
In  safety.''       "Yea,  in  safety  also  here, 
O  sister,"  Paul  said;  "for  the  sea  is  His, 
He  holds  it  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand." 
Brother  and  sister  parted  with  a  kiss  — 
Kiss  from  the  kindred  habit  of  old  time 
Dear,  but  far  dearer  in  a  dearer  love, 
And,  with  some  sense  of  reconcilement,  sweet. 
Therewith  the  sister  to  her  pillow  went ; 
But  Paul  abode  to  vigil  on  the  deck. 
He  pacing  to  and  fro,  the  night  wore  on. 


Book  VII.  "TO    C/.A-.//V.  ' 

And  one  by  one  his  fellow-passengers 
Withdrawing  left  him  more  and  more  alone. 

A  sheen  of  phosphorescence  on  the  sea 
Kindled  along  the  running  vessel's  side, 
And  drew  a  trail  of  brilliance  in  her  wake, 
Splendid  a  moment  and  then  vanishing, 
Devoured  by  the  immensity  of  dark 
Which  made  it  for  that  moment  so  intense. 
Paul  saw  this,  less  admiring  what  he  saw, 
Beautiful  though  it  was  and  wonderful, 
Than  musing  what  it  seemed  to  mean  for  him : 
'  So  my  soul  on  her  voyage  through  the  world 
Lights  her  own  pathway  as  she  moves  along  ; 
Bright  ever  where  she  is  she  makes  her  place, 
And  ever  plunges  on  into  the  dark 
Before  her  ;  but  her  latter  end  is  light ! ' 

Meanwhile,  of  all  the  lingerers  on  the  deck 
Amid  that  darkness,  only  two  remained. 
These,  as  they  might,  watched  him   now  bending 

there 

In  wistful  gaze  over  the  vessel's  side 
Downward  into  the  waters  weird  below  : 
Stephen  was  one  ;  the  other,  Shimei. 


215 


2i6  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VII. 

But  Shimei  had  crept  later  on  the  deck, 

When  the  increasing  dark  veiled  all  from  view 

\3    \ 
Save  what  was  moving  or  what  stood  upright ; 

So  he  knew  not  of  Stephen  now  reclined, 
Motionless  in  a  trance  of  pleasant  dream, 

There  where  Eunice  left  him,  when  she  too 

\ 

With  Rachel  from  the  open  night  retired. 

The  youth  had  lapped  him  in  a  happy  muse 

Of  memory  of  the  things  they  twain  that  eve 

Had  shared  in  converse  ;  it  was  like  twilight 

Prolonging  softer  the  full  light  of  day. 

Shimei  thought  darkly :  '  Could  yon  leaning  form 

Lean  farther,  and  embrace  indeed  the  wave 

He  yearns  toward,  this  enticing  murky  night! 

There  were  redemption  ready-wrought  for  me  — 

Who  might  be  spared,  forsooth,  accusing  whom 

His  own  forestalling  conscience  had  condemned, 

(So  it  should  look  !)  and  forced  him  on  to  die. 

"  Vengeance  is  mine  and  recompense,"  as  saith 

Our  Moses,  hinting  of  a  moment  when 

"  Their  foot  shall  slide."     Ha !  Ha !  It  fits  the  case  ! 

"  Their  foot  shall  slide  !  "     Feet  may  be  brought  to 

slide  ! 
The  deck  is  slippery  with  the  spray ;  a  tip 


Book  VII.  "TO    C.ESAR."  217 

V/^ */~*^ 
Forward  above,  with  a  trip  backward,  so, 

From  underneath '- —and  Shimei  acted  out 

In  pantomimic  gesture  his  quick  thought; 

'  An  accidental  movement,  were  it  seen, 

But  it  would  not  be  seen.     A  fine  dark  night, 

No  moon,  no  stars,  and  the  whole  hollow  sky 

Ink-black  with  clouds  that  when  ere  long  they  break 

Will  spit  ink-rain  into  an  inky  sea! 

Finger  of  God!     It  were  impiety 

Not  to  obey  a  pointing  such  as  this.' 

His  propense  thought  plunged  him  a  step   toward 

Paul. 

Stephen  hereon,  stretched  out  upon  the  deck, 
Marking  the  sinister  action  of  the  man 
Shadowed  upon  the  dark,  a  denser  dark, 
Noiselessly  gathered  up  his  members  all, 
Ready  to  rush  at  need  to  rescue,  yet 
Reserved,  alert,  to  watch  and  to  await, 
Like  leopard  couchant  tense  in  poise  to  spring. 

That  instant,  a  new  dimness  in  the  dark, 
A  swimming  outline,  figure  of  a  man 
Approaching,  with  a  rustle  of  approach 
Hinted,  no  more,  amid  the  rising  wind. 


218  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VII. 

This  Stephen  knew,  and  Shimei,  both  at  once. 

Shimei  recoiled ;  he  thought,  '  Well  paused  for  me  ! 

I  might  have  been  detected,  after  all ! ' 

Then,  gliding  toward  that  shadowy  moving  form, 

He  met  —  a  Roman  soldier,  front  to  front, 

Nigh  Stephen  where  he  lay  in  ambuscade 

Unpurposed,  but  now  vigilant  all  ear 

For  what  might  pass  between  those  men  so  met. 

A  sudden  shift  of  phase  to  Shimei's  thought, 

In  altered  phase  persistent  still  the  same. 

The  desperate  fancy  seized  him  to  essay 

Corrupting  that  custodian  of  Paul. 

A  helpless  fixed  fatuity  of  hate, 
A  dull  insistent  prodding  from  despair, 
Robbed  him  of  reason,  while  of  cunning  not : 
He  could  warp  wisely  toward  an  end  unwise. 
Suspected  by  the  Roman,  by  the  Jew 
No  longer  trusted  as  of  old  —  since  seen, 
Those  years  at  Caesarea,  changed  and  chilled 
So  from  his  pristine  ardor  in  pursuit 
Of  Paul  —  Shimei  saw  nothing  now  before 
Him  in  the  future  but  the  nearing  close 
In  a  blind  alley,  opening  none  beyond, 


Book  VII.  "TO   C/'.V./A'."  219 

Of  the  strait  way  wherein  perforce  he  walked. 
One  gleam  of  light,  of  possible  light,  ahead, 
He  now  descried.      If  Paul  could  somehow  be 
Utterly  cancelled  from  his  case,  no  Paul 
Anywhere  longer  in  the  world,  and  if, 
Ah,  if,  O  rapture  !   Paul  could  disappear 
Confessing  guilt  by  seeming  suicide  - 
That  were  the  one  deliverance  left  to  hope, 
Hope  if  forlorn,  at  least,  at  least,  a  hope. 
Shimei  his  foot  set  softly  in  the  snare. 

With  slow  and  sly  ambages  of  approach, 
He  sounded  if  the  soldier  were  of  stuff 
To  be  in  safety  tampered  with,  and  how. 
Close  at  his  feet,  but  guarded  from  their  touch 
By  a  low  heap  of  cordage  coiled  between, 
There  Stephen  lay  the  while,  a  breathless  corpse, 
And  listened  —  with  his  body  and  his  mind 
Both  utterly  all  organ  to  attend  - 
As  Shimei  with  that  shifty  cunning  his, 
Insidious,  like  the  entrance  of  disease, 
Wormed  him  into  the  bosom  of  his  man, 
Instilling  the  temptation,  sweet  with  bribe, 
To  make  away  with  his  Jew  prisoner. 


220  THE  EPIC  OF  FA  UL.  Book  VII. 

It  would  but  give  the  wretch's  wish  effect  — 

So  Shimei  glozed  with  subtle  speciousness  — • 

Should  now  his  gentle  keeper  intervene 

To  end  the  endless  waverings  of  a  mind 

On  self-destruction  bent,  a  suicide 

Who  only  lacked  the  courage  of  despair, 

By  tossing  Paul  headforemost  overboard. 

Three  points  thereby  were  gained,  and  nothing  lost : 

A  criminal  would  meet  his  just  desert, 

One  fain  to  die  his  heart's  desire  obtain, 

And  he,  the  soldier,  no  one  wiser,  take 

The  profit,  gold  in  hand,  of  a  good  deed. 

"  Thou  knowest,"  the  tempter  said,  "  the  feel  of  gold, 

The  weight,"  and  therewith  thrust  some  pieces  broad 

Into  the  soldier's  hand,  the  antepast 

And  warrant  of  a  ready  rich  reward. 

If  question  should  arise  involving  him, 

Why,  nothing  easier  than  to  say  and  swear, 

The  prisoner,  conscious  of  his  guilt,  and  now 

Quite  at  the  end  of  all  his  hopes  by  wile, 

Had  used  the  favoring  cover  of  the  night 

To  make  a  sudden  spring  into  the  brine. 

He,  heedful  of  his  duty  and  his  charge, 

Had  promptly  put  the  utmost  effort  forth 


Book  VII.  "TO    C/ESAR."  221 

To  seize  him,  and  defeat  the  dire  attempt. 
But  desperation  was  too  masterful 
In  force  and  quickness,  to  be  so  forestalled. 
The  fates  and  furies  buoyed  him  overboard 
And  plumped  him  to  the  bottom  of  the  deep. 
Then,  were  his  single  witness  held  in  doubt, 
Why,  by  good  luck,  here  was  a  passenger 
Who  saw  the  fellow  fetch  his  frenzied  leap, 
And  saw  his  watchman  hold  him  back  in  vain  ; 
He,  Shimei,  would  not  fail  him  at  the  pinch, 
To  swear  him  clear  of  any  touch  of  blame. 

The  soldier,  to  this  word,  had  little  spoke, 
Nothing  that  might  import  his  secret  thought, 
Heed  giving  in  blank  silence,  ominous, 
Or  hopeful,  for  his  tempter,  dubious  which. 
Now  he  spoke,  saying:  "  Glibly  dost  thou  talk, 
Making  the  task  light,  laughable  the  risk. 
Know  it  is  perilous  business,  this  of  thine. 
Yon  Paul  appears  a  prisoner  of  note, 
Whom  our  centurion,  for  his  reasons,  treats 
With  favor  "  — "  For  his  reasons,  yea  ;  well  said,'1 
Interposed  Shimei;  "but  such  reasons  fail 
Promptly  when  the  purse  fails  that  yields  them.    End 


222  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VII. 

Already,  as  I  know,  was  reached  with  Paul, 

When  he  at  Sidon  bought  his  leave  to  land, 

Hoping  a  rescue."      "  But,"  the  soldier  said, 

"  Paul  seems  indeed  to  be  a  worthy  man." 

"  A  wise  head,  thou,"  the  wily  Jew  replied  ; 

"  '  Seems,'  --thou  hast  once  more  hit  it  in  that  word  ! 

Fair-seeming  truly,  rotten  at  the  core." 

"  However  that  may  be,"  the  guard  rejoined, 

"  Rotten  or  sound  the  man,  it  were  a  deed, 

A  bold  deed,  deed  of  risk  and  price,  to  do 

What  thou  requirest."      '  Willing,'  Shimei  thought, 

1  Willing,  but  greedy  ;  bid  for  higher  pay  ! 

Bait  him  his  fill,  no  time  for  higgling  now.' 

He  said  :  "  Bold  enterprises  to  the  bold. 

Yea,  there  is  risk  ;  no  need  to  make  it  small ; 

It  is  a  soldier  I  am  talking  with. 

But  I  will  amply  match  the  risk  with  wage. 

Thy  peril  stint  not  thou,  I  not  thy  pay. 

Here  is  a  scrip  stuffed  out  with  yellow  gold, 

Test  it  for  weight,  thou  earnest  it  all  this  night." 

The  soldier  had  but  meant  to  parley  :  now 
This  toying  with  temptation  by  the  touch, 
Added  to  his  long  dalliance  through  the  ear, 


Book  VII.  "TO   C^ESARr  223 

Proved  penetrant,  seductive,  so  beyond 

His  forethought,  that  he  stood  amazed,  appalled, 

Listening,  to  feel  how  much  he  was  enticed. 

He  might  have  yielded  to  the  sorcery, 

But  Stephen,  with  an  instant  instinct  wise, 

Sudden  sprang,  speechless,  imminent,  to  his  feet. 

The  soldier  at  the  apparition  took 

A  fine  air  of  indignant  virtue  on. 

"  Rascal,"  said  he,  "  I  have  trolled  thee  well  along 

From  point  to  point  and  let  thee  talk  and  talk, 

And  my  palm  tickle  with  the  touch  of  gold, 

Or  counterfeit  of  gold,  thou  counterfeit 

Of  man !    Thou  hast  shown  thyself  for  what  thou  art. 

Thy  proffered  bribe  I  keep  for  proof  of  thee ; 

But  thou,  thou  goest  with  me  my  prisoner. 

A  night  in  irons  down  in  the  deepest  hold 

May  give  thee  waking  dreams  thy  morrow's  chance 

With  the  centurion  hardly  will  dispel  !  " 

Therewith  he  stalked  off  Shimei,  stunned  to  dumb 

And  dizzy,  with  that  deafening  crack  of  doom. 

Scarce  less  astonished  and  scarce  less  dismayed, 
Stephen  stood  stricken  on  the  staggering  deck ; 
The  roaring  of  the  unregarded  wind 


224 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VII. 


Less  noisy  than  the  tumult  of  his  thoughts. 

The  contrast  of  the  horror  of  such  crime 

To  the  sweet  peace  and  pleasure  he  but  now 

Was  tasting  in  the  hallowing  afterglow 

Of  those  bright  moments  with  Eunice  spent ; 

The  frightful  danger  overpast  for  Paul  ; 

The  retribution,  like  a  thunderbolt, 

Fallen  on  Shimei  ;  these,  with  remembrance  mixed 

Of  what  the  chiliarch,  wiser  than  he  knew, 

Said,  touching  Shimei  with  that  letter  charged 

Of  sinister  import  to  Caesarea, 

"  He  carries  his  own  sentence  thither  hence  " — 

. 

'  Unwritten  sentence  in  his  bosom,  yea, 

He  carried,  and  he  carries,  wretched  man  ! ' 
Thought  Stephen.     '  And  what  dire  things  in  the 

world ! 

And  God  from  heaven  beholds  and  suffers  all  ! 
And  what  will  be  the  end,  if  ever  end, 
Of  all  this  tale  of  wickedness  with  woe 
Drawn  out   from  age  to  age,  through  clime  and 

clime  !  * 

Such  thoughts  on  thoughts  held  Stephen  hanging 
there 


Book  VII.  "TO   C&SAR."  225 

Unnoted  minutes,  till  the  dash  of  rain 

In  great  drops  threatening  deluge  smote  his  face 

Like  hailstones,  and  awoke  him  to  the  world. 

At  the  same  moment,  Paul  —  who  had  not  dreamed 

Of  the  swift,  muffled,  darkling  tragedy 

Of  plot  and  peril,  shame  and  crime  and  doom, 

Just  acted  nigh  him  in  that  theater, 

And  microcosm  afloat  of  the  wide  world  - 

Broke  up  the  long  lull  of  his  reverie 

Above  the  running  waters,  heard,  scarce  seen, 

Beneath  him,  by  the  hasting  vessel's  side  - 

As  if  a  symbol  of  the  mystery 

Of  things,  an-hungered  to  devour  all  thought!— 

And  turned  to  shroud  him  from  the  weather  wild. 

The  uncle  and  the  nephew  met,  but  spoke 

Only  a  peace  and  farewell  for  the  night  ; 

Stephen  not  finding  in  his  heart  to  break 

To  Paul  the  ill  good  news  of  what  had  passed. 

With  the  rain  falling,  soon  the  wind  was  laid, 
Planed  was  the  sea,  and  cleansed  of  cloud  the  sky. 
Bright  the  stars  looked  innumerably  down 
On  the  ship  smoothly  sped  her  prosperous  way. 


BOOK     VIII. 
SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS. 


The  centurion  Julius,  having  in  charge  the  prisoners  on 
board  including  Paul,  examines  Shimei,  accused  of  his  crime 
by  the  sentinel  whom  the  crafty  Hebrew  had  sought  to  bribe. 
Shimei  makes  a  desperate  effort  to  clear  himself  by  bringing 
a  countercharge  against  Paul  of  the  same  murderous  attempt 
through  bribe  upon  his,  Shimei's,  life.  Almost  on  the  point 
of  succeeding,  he  is  confronted  first  with  Felix,  then  with 
Stephen,  last  with  Paul — to  his  complete  undoing. 


SHIMEI   BEFORE  JULIUS. 

The  waking  dreams  of  Shimei,  in  his  chains 
And  darkness,  were  not  altogether  those 
Foreshadowed  by  the  soldier  bitterly 
To  him  —  dreams  of  foreboding  and  despair 
Only  ;  that  Roman  had  not  learned  that  Jew. 
The  touch  and  prick  of  uttermost  dismay 
Stung  him  to  one  more  struggle  for  himself. 
Ere  Julius,  with  the  morning,  had  him  forth 
To  inquest  from  his  dungeon,  that  quick  brain 
Had  ripe  and  ready,  conjured  up  in  thought, 
For  self-defense,  with  snare  involved  for  Paul, 
A  desperate  last  compacture  of  deceit ; 
Desperate,  yet  deftly  woven,  and  staggering, 
Till  the  contriver  was  now  quite  undone, 
Confronted  with  ascendant  truth  and  power. 

"  What  sayest  thou,  Jew,"  with  challenge  lowering 

stern, 

Asked  the  centurion  of  his  prisoner, 
"  In  answer  to  the  charge  against  thee  laid?" 
"What  say?"  with  shrug  of  shoulder  Shimei  said  ; 


230  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

"  Why,  that  thy  soldier  was  too  strong  for  me, 
And  haled  me  and  bestowed  me  as  he  would, 
While  at  his  leisure  then  his  tale  he  told, 
Forestalling  mine,  to  prepossess  thine  ear. 
I  come  too  late  ;  for  I  should  speak  in  vain," 
"  Worse  than   in  vain  such  words  as  those  thou 

speakest. 

Out  on  thine  insolence,  thou  Hebrew  dog!" 
Savagely  the  centurion  said.     "  '  Too  late  '  ! 
'  Too  late  '  !     Know,  Jew,  too  late  it  never  is, 
Where  Roman  justice  undertakes,  for  one 
Accused  of  crime  to  answer  for  himself. 
True  judge's  ear  cannot  be  'prepossessed.' 
Even  now,  deserving,  as  thou  art,  to  be 
Buffeted,  rather  than  aught  further  heard, 
Speak  on  and  say  thy  say  ;  but  give  good  heed 
Thou  curb  thy  tongue  from  insolence  and  lies." 

"  From  lying  I  shall  have  no  need  my  tongue 
To  guard,"  said  Shimei ;  "but  from  insolence  — 
Beseech  thy  grace,  a  plain  blunt  man  am  I, 
Will  it  be  insolence,  if  I  inquire 
What  is  the  crime  that  I  am  charged  withal  ?" 
Curtly  the  Roman  said  :  "  Attempt  to  bribe 


Book  VIII.       SHIM  El  BEFORE  JULIUS.  231 

A  soldier,  and  a  Roman  soldier  he, 

To  break  his  oath  and  be  a  murderer." 

"No  stint  of  generous  measure  to  the  charge," 

Said  Shimei ;  "  yet  I  ought  not  to  complain, 

I,  who  a  charge  of  ampler  measure  would 

Myself  have  brought  (as  well  as  he  knew  who  now, 

And  for  that  very  cause,  accuses  me) 

Had  I  been  first;  and  first  I  should  have  been, 

But  for  duress,  and  also  this  he  knew, 

Thence  the  duress  — outrageous  act  from  him, 

Lese-majesty  committed  against  thee  !  - 

I  say,  had  I  beforehand  been  with  him 

To  gain  thine  ear  and  a  foul  plot  disclose." 

The  soldier  stood  in  stupid  blank  amaze, 
With  silence  by  his  discipline  enforced, 
To  hear  this  frontless  impudence  of  fraud. 
He  so  much  looked  the  guilt  in  slant  implied 
By  Shimei,  that  no  marvel  Julius  glanced 
From  one  to  the  other  of  the  two,  perplexed, 
Each  the  accuser  and  accused  of  each. 
His  soldier  was  a  trusty  man  supposed; 
The  Jew  came  clouded  and  suspect  as  false: 
But  always  it  was  possible  repute 


232  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

Accredited  a  man,  or  blamed,  amiss. 

"Thou  riddlest  like  an  oracle  :  be  plain 

And  outright,"  so  to  Shimei  Julius  spoke. 

"  Thou  hast  vaguely  shadowed  some  worse  shape 

of  crime 

Thou  couldst  reveal  than  that  which  seems  revealed, 
Accused  to  thee.     What  could  be  worse  misdeed 
Than  breach  attempted  of  a  soldier's  faith 
To  purchase  murder?"   "  Breach  accomplished," 

said 

Shimei,  "  were  worse  ;  and,  in  a  just  assay, 
Worse  to  attaint  the  honor  of  a  man 
Upright  and  good  and  true,  and  of  him  make 
A  criminal  worthy  of  death,  and  doomed 
As  such  to  die  :  yea,  a  far  darker  crime 
Than  were  purveyal  of  the  needed  stroke 
To  end  a  little  earlier  some  base  life, 
Forfeit  at  any  rate  by  guilt,  and  fain 
Itself  to  court  such  refuge  from  despair. 
Still  more  were  worse  the  crime  wrhereof  I  speak, 
Let  the  man  so  attainted  in  his  truth 
Be  one  that  moment  bearing  office  grave 
As  an  accuser  and  a  witness  sworn 
Against  such  very  criminal  himself. 


Book  VIII.       SHI  MET  BEFORE  JULIUS.  233 

Then  is  the  crime  no  longer  merely  crime 
Against  the  single  man  however  just, 
But  crime  against  justice  itself  and  law, 
And  even  against  the  outraged  human  race." 

There  was  a  stumbling  incongruity  — 
Blasphemous,  had  it  been  less  whimsical,  * 

Whimsical,  had  it  been  less  blasphemous  - 
Between  the  man  himself  and  what  he  said. 
His  words  were  noble,  or  had  noble  been 
But  that  the  ignoble  man  who  uttered  them 
Gainsaid  them  with  the  whole  of  what  he  was. 

The  soldier  more  and  more  astounded  stood, 
Or  cowered,  say  rather,  underneath  the  frown 
Beetling  and  imminent  of  falsehood  such, 
Mountainous  high,  and  like  a  mountain  set 
Immovable.     (Immovable  it  seemed, 
But  at  its  heart  with  fear  was  tremulous, 
And,  to  the  proper  breath,  would  presently 
Melt,  like  cloud-mountain  massed  of  misty  stone 
To  the  wind's  touch.)     As  in  a  nightmare,  he 
Could  no  least  gesture  move  to  give  the  lie, 
Browbeaten  half  to  disbelieve  himself. 


234  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  B°ok  VIII 

Julius,  nonplussed  to  see  his  soldier's  air 
Almost  confessing  judgment  on  himself, 
Skeptic,  yet  therewithal  impressed  despite, 
Imposed  on  even,  by  a  mock-majesty, 
The  specious  counterfeit  of  virtue  wroth 
But,  though  wroth,  calm  in  conscious  innocence, 
Couched  in  the  lofty  words  of  Shimei, 
While  by  his  aspect  blatantly  belied  — 
Julius,  thus  wondering,  curious,  frowned  and  said: 
"  Cease  from  preamble,  and  forth  with  thy  charge ! 
No  further  swelling  phrases,  large  and  vague  ; 
But  facts  —  or  fictions — in  plain  terms  and  few." 

Audience  at  length  prepared,  so  Shimei  deemed, 
His  story,  well  before  prepared,  he  told : 
"  I  lingered  late  last  night  upon  the  deck : 
Slow  pacing  up  and  down  for  exercise, 
I  strict  bethought  me  how  I  best  might  quit 
The  serious  task  committed  to  my  hands 
Of  seeking  sentence  on  a  criminal 
There  at  the  fountain  and  prime  spring  of  law 
And  justice,  that  august  tribunal  last, 
The  imperial  seat  at  Rome.     While  I  thus  mused, 
The  Providence  that,  dark  sometimes  and  slow, 


Book  VIII.       S///J/7-;/  HEFORE  JULIUS  235 

As  to  us  seems,  does  after  all  pursue 

The  flying  footsteps  of  foul  crime  with  scourge, 

Or  human  vengeance  help  to  overtake, 

Showed  me  a  light,  which,  alas,  quickly  then 

By  envious  evil  powers  in  turn  was  quenched. 

For  it  so  fell  that  in  the  exceeding  dark, 

Unseen,  I  overheard  the  prisoner  Paul 

Broach  a  new  plot  of  bribery  and  wrong. 

He  promised  to  the  soldier  keeping  him 

Large  money  —  earnest  offered,  and  received, 

I  plainly  heard  it  clink  from  hand  to  hand  " 

The  soldier  winced  beneath  the  meaning  glance 

Shot  at  himself  wherewith  the  subtile  Jew 

Spoke  these  last  words ;  winced,  and  sore  wished, 

too  late, 

That,  as  he  first  had  purposed,  he  had  shown 
In  proof  to  the  centurion  Shimei's  gold 
Shoved  for  a  bribe  into  his  hand,  but  here 
Adroitly  turned  to  use  against  himself. 
What  if  his  captain,  prompted  by  such  hint, 
Should  now  demand  to  see  that  dastard  gold  ! 
He  had  been  silent  touching  it  because 
His  mere  possession  of  it  would,  he  felt, 
Look  too  much  like  his  paltering  with  a  price  ; 


236  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

But,  after  Shimei's  words,  to  have  it  found 

Upon  him  !     With  such  disconcerting  thoughts, 

The  soldier  listened  like  a  criminal, 

As  Shimei  with  calm  iteration  said  :  — 

"  Thus  would  Paul  buy  his  keeper  to  forswear 

Against  the  one  man  he  most  feared,  myself, 

That  I  had  sought  to  bribe  a  soldier's  faith, 

Bargaining  with  him  to  fling  overboard 

His  prisoner  and  so  rid  him  from  the  world. 

'  Thou  sawest,'  Paul  told  the  soldier,  '  how  at  Sidon 

An  ample  sum  was  put  into  his  hands 

By  wealthy  friends  there '  :  he  all  this  now  pledged 

To  be  his  keeper's,  no  denary  short, 

If  but  he  would  traduce  me  thus,  and  so 

Both  break  the  damning  power  I  else  could  wield 

Against  him,  and,  besides,  my  life  destroy. 

Thy  soldier  yielded  :  grievous  wrong  indeed, 

Yet  him  I  can  forgive,  for  less  as  bribed 

He  faltered,  than  as  overcome  he  fell. 

Paul  is  the  master  of  an  evil  art 

To  make  his  subject  firmly  hold  for  true 

What,  free  from  sorcery,  he  would  know  was  false. 

He,  in  the  very  act  and  article 

Of  sketching  what  his  victim  was  on  me 


Book  V 1 1 1.       SHIM  El  BEFORE  J  ULI  US.  237 

To  father,  the  illusion  could  in  him 
Produce  of  hearing  his  own  words  from  me. 
A  trick  Paul  has  of  vocal  mimicry  - 
Sleight  of  longiloquence,  whereby  he  throws 
To  distance,  as  may  like,  his  uttered  words, 
To  make  them  seem  another's,  not  his  own  - 
Aided  him  here  ;   I  hardly  knew,  myself, 
Hearing  him  speak,  but  that  the  voice  was  mine. 
Thus  I  account  for  it,  that,  without  blame 
So  much  to  him  himself,  he  being  deceived, 
This  worthy  soldier,  whom  I  never  wronged, 
Doubtless  an  honest  fellow  in  the  main, 
Should  in  effect  malign  me  so  to  thee. 

"In  my  simplicity,  and  in  my  faith 
Undoubting  that,  confronted  fair  with  truth, 
Falsehood  must  needs  take  on  its  proper  shape, 
Then  shrivel,  ashamed  to  be  at  all,  I  sprang 
Suddenly  up,  discovered  to  the  pair. 
I  never  dreamed  but  they  would  at  my  feet 
Fall,  and  for  mercy  sue ;  which  Shimei  — 
Soft-hearted  ever  for  another,  where 
Only  himself  is  wronged,  however  hard 
He  steel  his  heart  where  stake  is  public  good  — 


238  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

Had  doubtless  weakly  granted  out  of  hand. 
But,  to  my  wonder,  and,  I  own,  dismay  — 
This  for  the  moment,  but  that  weakness  passed  — 
At  a  quick  sign  from  Paul,  the  soldier  seized 
Me  and  consigned  to  dungeon  for  the  night. 
What  followed  more  on  deck,  I  can  but  guess. 
I  doubt  not  Paul  completed  work  begun 
In  this  poor  soldier's  mind,  and  fixed  his  faith 
That  all  had  happened  as  he  made  report. 
I  pray  thee  judge  his  error  lightly ;  he 
Was  of  another's  will,  against  his  own, 
Possessed,  loth  pervert  of  a  power  malign." 

The  soldier,  hearing,  was  now  witched  indeed. 
Partly  his  sense  of  flaw  in  rectitude  — 
Then  suffered  when  he  paltered  with  the  bribe 
Proffered  by  Shimei  —  shook  him;  and  partly  he 
Descried  a  shift  of  refuge  for  himself 
From  dreaded  blame  at  his  centurion's  hands  — 
Should  Julius,  as  looked  likely  more  and  more, 
At  length  accept  the  Hebrew's  tale  for  true  — 
In  letting  it  appear  that  Paul  in  fact 
Had  wrought  upon  him  so  as  Shimei  said, 
To  cheat  him  into  honest  misbelief. 


Book  VIII.        SHIMRI  BEFORE  JULIUS.  239 

This  was  the  deeply  calculated  hope 

Wherein  that  glozer,  plotting  as  he  went 

With  versatile  adjustment  to  his  necnl- 

Need  shifting,  point  by  point,  from  phase  to  phase  - 

Provided  for  the  soldier  his  escape 

From  the  necessity  of  holding  fast, 

In  self-defence,  to  his  first  testimony. 

Thus,  if  all  prospered,  Shimei,  yea,  might  yet 

Save  to  himself  the  future  chance  to  use 

This  soldier,  more  amenable  to  use. 

Paul's  keeper,  thus  prepared  to  falter,  heard 
Ambiguous  challenge  from  the  officer  : 
"What  sayest  thou,  soldier?     Wast  beside  thyself? 
Dazed,  hast  thou  then  denounced  the  innocent  man  ?  " 
Whereto  ambiguous  answer  thus  he  framed : 
"  If  I  have  done  so,  it  was  in  excess 
And  haste  of  zeal  to  do  a  soldier's  duty, 
Misapprehended  under  wicked  spell." 
"  Thou  art  not  sure  ?     A  witness  should  be  sure  ; 
More,  be  he  one  denouncing  deeds  essayed 
Worthy  of  death  ;  most,  if  besides  he  add 
An  office  of  the  executioner." 
Thus  the  centurion  to  his  soldier  spoke, 


240 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 


Who  answered,  shuffling:  "  If  my  senses  were 
Rightly  my  own  last  night,  I  told  thee  true ; 
But  if  I  was  usurped  by  sorcery 
To  see  and  hear  amiss  —  why,  who  can  say?" 

"  Go  find  lord  Felix,  and,  due  worship  paid, 
Pray  him  come  hither  for  a  need  that  waits  ," 
So  Julius  made  his  soldier  messenger. 
"  Grieving  to  trouble  thee  so  far,"  he  next 
To  Felix,  soon  appearing,  said  :  "  I  sent 
To  ask  thee  of  the  Jew  in  presence  here. 
Knowest  thou  aught  of  him  that  might  resolve 
A  doubt  how  much  he  be  to  trust  for  true?" 
Shimei  shrank  visibly,  while  Felix,  glad 
To  vent  his  hatred  of  the  pander,  spoke : 
"As  many  as  his  words,  so  many  lies  ; 
Trust  him  thou  mayest  —  to  never  speak  the  truth." 
Wherewith  the  haughty  freedman  on  his  heel 
Turned,  as  disdaining  to  use  tongue  or  ear 
Further  in  such  a  cause,  and  disappeared. 
Julius  in  silence  looked  a  questioning  pause 
At  Shimei,  who  risked  parrying  answer,  thus : 
"Lord  Felix  is  a  disappointed  man, 
Who,  if  so  soured,  is  gently  to  be  judged. 


Book  VIII.        A///.)//-:/  BEFORE  JULIUS.  341 

Yet  were  it  better  he  had  stooped  to  speak 

By  instance,  named  occasion,  wherein  I 

Had  seemed  to  fail  matching  my  words  with  deeds. 

I  own  I  sought  to  serve  him  in  his  need  ; 

And  if,  forsooth,  when  he  his  hold  on  power 

Felt  slipping  from  his  hands,  I  undertook 

Freely,  in  succor  of  his  fainting  mind, 

Somewhat  beyond  my  strength  to  bring  to  pass, 

In  reconcilement  of  my  countrymen 

Against  his  sway  unwontedly  aggrieved  - 

Why,  I  am  sorry  ;  but  failed  promises, 

Made  in  good  faith,  should  not  be  reckoned  lies." 

There  seemed  to  the  centurion  measure  enough 
Of  reason  in  what  Shimei  so  inferred, 
If  truly  he  inferred,  to  leave  the  doubt 
Still  unresolved  with  which  he  was  perplexed. 

While  the  diversion  of  the  incident 
With  Felix,  and  of  Shimei's  parrying,  passed, 
The  soldier,  so  released  to  cast  about 
At  leisure,  thought  of  Stephen  standing  up, 
In  that  so  Sphinx-like  silence,  startlingly, 
Beside  him,  in  the  darkness  on  the  deck, 
At  just  the  fatal  point  of  his  own  poise 


242  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

For  the  returnless  plunge  in  the  abyss ; 

That  Hebrew  youth  would  doubtless  testify 

To  Shimei's  damning;  —  to  his  own  as  well? 

That  were  to  think  of!    What  would  Stephen  say? 

Must  it  not  cloud  his  own  clear  truth  and  faith, 

To  have  it  told  how  he  abode  so  long 

A  hearkener  to  temptation  ;  how  he  took 

Gold  as  for  bribe,  and  greedy  seemed  of  more? 

Why  had  he  not  been  first  to  speak  of  that? 

Wisest  it  looked  to  him  not  to  invoke 

A  witness  of  so  much  uncertain  power 

To  bring  his  own  behavior  into  doubt. 

And  Shimei  showed  such  master  of  his  part, 

Equal  to  shifting  all  appearances 

This  way  or  that,  as  best  would  serve  himself, 

Promised  so  fair  to  make  his  side  prevail, 

Were  it  not  well  to  choose  the  chance  with  him  f 

The  soldier  fixed  to  stake  on  Stephen  naught 

Shimei  meantime  had  otherwise  bethought 
Himself  of  Stephen  —  fearing,  yet  with  hope 
Prevailing  over  fear  :  hardly  would  he, 
The  soldier,  risk  to  call  such  witness  in. 

Those  twain  diversely  so  with  the  same  thought 


Book  VIII.        SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS.  243 

Secretly  busy,  the  centurion — - 
Whether  by  some  unconscious  sympathy 
His  mind  drawn  into  current  following  theirs, 
Like  idle  sea-drift  in  the  wake  of  ships  - 
Startled  them  both  alike  with  his  next  word  : 
"That  Hebrew  lad,  Stephen  they  call  him,  go 
Fetch  him  ;  say, '  Come  with  me,'  and  no  word  more." 
This  to  the  soldier,  who  soon  brought  the  youth. 
"Some  kin  thou  to  the  prisoner  Paul,  I  think?" 
Said  the  centurion.     "Sister's  son,"  said  he. 
"  I  had  thee  well  reported  of,  my  lad  ; 
Belie  not  thy  good  fame,  but  answer  true," 
Julius  to  Stephen  spoke,  adjuring  him. 
"  Knowest  thou  aught,  of  thine  own  eye  or  ear, 
How  Paul  thy  kinsman  was  bestead  last  night?" 

Now  Stephen  had  not  yet  to  Paul  declared 
Aught  of  the  strange  disclosures  of  the  night. 
Seeing  here  the  plotter  of  that  nameless  deed 
Demoniac,  in  the  part  of  one  accused, 
Witnessed  against  with  damning  testimony, 
The  soldier's,  all-sufficing  for  his  doom, 
Before  a  judge  as  Roman  sure  to  be 
Swift  in  his  sentence  upon  such  a  crime  — 


244  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  Book  vnl- 

Prompt  in  his  secret  mind  Stephen  resolved, 
As  likeliest  best  to  please  his  kinsman  Paul, 
Not  to  go  further  than  compelled,  to  add 
Superfluous  proof  against  the  wretched  man. 

Sincerely  wretched  now  indeed  once  more 
Shimei  appeared  ;  effrontery  of  fraud 
And  his  vain  confidence  of  hope  forlorn 
Abashed  in  him,  intolerably  rebuked  — 
Not  more  by  this  access  of  evidence 
(Unlooked  for,  since  that  muzzle  to  his  mouth 
Had  so  well  served  to  hold  the  soldier  mute 
From  mention  of  the  Hebrew  lad)  —  not  more 
Abashed  thus  and  rebuked,  than  by  the  mere 
Aspect  of  the  clear  innocence  and  truth 
And  virtue,  honor  and  high  mind,  in  fair 
And  noble  person  there  embodied  seen 
In  Stephen  beamy  with  his  taintless  youth. 
Was  it  some  promise  of  retrieving  yet 
Possible  for  this  soul,  so  lost  to  good, 
That,  broken  from  that  festive  confidence 
Once  his  in  the  omnipotence  of  fraud 
To  answer  all  his  ends,  he  thus  should  feel 
Pain  in  the  neighborhood  of  nobleness  ? 


Book  VIII.        SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS.  345 

Unconsciously  so  working,  like  a  wand 

Wielded  that  cancels  a  magician's  spell, 

To  shame  back  wretched  Shimei  to  himself, 

Nor  ever  guessing,  in  his  guileless  mind, 

Of  possible  other  posture  to  affairs 

Than  full  exposure  of  the  criminal 

Already  reached,  no  need  of  word  from  him- 

Stephen    to  Julius  frugally  replied: 

"  Paul's  case  was  happy,  sir,  if  this  thou  meanest, 

How  fared  he  in  the  hap  which  him  befell ;" 

Then,  conscious  of  a  look  not  satisfied 

In  Julius,  added  :  "  If  instead  thou  meanest 

What  hap  was  threatened  him  but  came  to  naught, 

Then  I  shall  need  to  answer  otherwise." 

"  This  I  would  learn,"  said  Julius,  "dost  thou  know, 

Of  certain  knowledge,  thine  own  eye  or  ear, 

Where  Paul  was,  and  what  doing,  through  the  hours 

Of  last  night's  darkness?     How  was  he  bestead? 

That  tell  me,  if  thou  knowest,  naught  else  but  that. 

Fact,  first;  thereafter,  fancy — if  at  all." 

A  little  puzzled,  but  withal  relieved, 
Not  to  be  witness  against  Shimei, 
"It  happened,"  Stephen  said,  "that  as  the  dark 


246  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

Drew  on,  Paul  with  his  sister  Rachel  talked, 
They  two  apart ;  but  nigh  at  hand  I  sat, 
With  others,  on  the  deck.     As  the  night  waxed, 
With  darkness  from  the  still-withdrawing  sun, 
And  then  from  clouds  that  blotted  out  the  stars, 
Almost  all  went  to  covert  one  by  one ; 
But  Paul  abode,  and  I  abode  with  him. 
Yet  were  we  from  each  other  separate, 
And  Paul  perhaps  knew  not  that  I  was  nigh  ; 
But  I  lay  watching  him  and  nursed  my  thoughts. 
At  first  he  paced,  as  musing,  up  and  down, 
Then,  still  alone,  and  still  as  musing,  leaned, 
In  absent  long  oblivion  of  himself, 
Over  the  vessel's  side  —  into  the  sea 
Gazing,  like  one  who  read  a  mystic  book. 
This  and  naught  else  he  did,  until  a  dash 
Of  rain-drops  shredded  from  the  tempest  broke 
His  reverie  ;  and  then  both  he  and  I, 
Meeting  a  moment  but  to  say  good-night, 
Housed  us  for  the  forgetfulness  of  sleep." 

"Thou  hast  told  me  all?     Communication  none 
Between  Paul  and  this  soldier  keeping  him?" 
Straitly  of  Stephen  the  centurion  asked, 


Book  VIII.       SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS.  247 

With  eye  askance  on  Shimei  shrinking  there. 
"With  no  one,"  Stephen  answered,  "spake   Paul 

word, 

After  that  converse  with  his  sister,  till 
I  met  him  face  to  face  and  changed  good  night." 

"Thou  hadst  some  fancy  other  than  thy  fact," 
Said  Julius  now  to  Stephen,  "some  surmise 
As  seemed  concerning  danger  threatened  Paul" 
But  Shimei  dimmed  so  visibly  to  worse 
Confession  of  dismay  in  countenance, 
That  Julius  checked  the  challenge  on  his  lips, 
And,  turning,  said  to  Shimei :  "  Need  we  more? 
Or  art  unmasked  to  thy  contentment,  Jew? 
Shall  I  bid  hither  Paul,  forsooth,  and  let 
Thee  face  the  uncle,  since  the  nephew  so, 
Simply  to  see,  thy  gullet  fills  with  gall, 
And  twists  thy  wizened  features  all  awry? 
Aye,  for  meseems  it  were  a  happy  thought, 
Go,  lad,  and  call  thy  kinsman  hither  straight. 
Stay,  hast  thou  seen  him  since  last  night's  farewell  ?  " 
"  Nay,"  answered  Stephen.     "  Well !  "  the  Roman 

said ; 
"  So  tell  him  nothing  now  of  what  is  here. 


248  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

Say  only,  'The  centurion  wishes  thee '  ; 

Haste,   bring    him."     Stephen    soon    returned    with 

Paul, 

Who  wondered,  knowing  naught  of  all,  to  see 
What  the  encounter  was,  for  him  prepared. 

Not  till  now  ever,  since  the  fateful  time 
When,  buoyant  with  the  sense  of  his  reprieve 
Won  for  a  season  from  the  contact  loathed 
Of  Shimei,  Paul  rode  forth  Damascus-ward, 
Had  they  two  in  such  mutual  imminence  met. 
Paul  looked  at  Shimei  now,  not  with  regard 
That,  like  a  bayonet  fixed,  thrust  him  aloof, 
Or  icily  transpierced  him  pitiless  ; 
But  in  a  gentle  pathos  of  surprise, 
With  sorrow  yearning  to  be  sympathy  — 
Reciprocal  forgiveness  interchanged 
Between  them,  and  all  difference  reconciled : 
A  melting  heaven  of  cloudless  April  blue 
Ready  to  weep  suffusion  of  warm  tears, 
The  aspect  seemed  of  Paul  on  Shimei  turned. 
Good  will,  such  wealth,  expressed,  must  needs  good 

will 
Responsive  find,  or,  failing  that,  create  ! 


Book  VIII.       SHIMEI  BEFOIOS*gU£tU&^  249 


But  Shimei  did  not  take  the  look  benign 
Of  Paul,  to  feel  its  vernal  power ;  downcast 
His  eyes  he  dropped  and  missed  the  virtue  shed- 
Missed,  yet  not  so  as  not  some  gracious  force, 
Ungraciously,  ill  knowing,  to  admit. 

"Thou  knowest  this  fellow-countryman  of  thine?" 
To  the  apostle  speaking,  Julius  said. 
"  I  know  him,  yea,"  said  Paul.     "And  knowest  per 
haps/' 

Said  Julius,  further  sounding,  "what  the  chance 
Of  mischief  from  him  thou  hast  late  escaped  ?  " 
"  Nay,  but  not  yet  have  I,  I  trow,"  Paul  said, 
"  Escaped  the  evil  he  fain  would  bring  on  me. 
He  hates  me,  and,  if  but  he  could,  he  would 
Quite  rid  me  from  the  world;  that  know  I  well. 
"  But  knowest  thou,"  the  centurion  pressed,  "  how  he 
Plotted  last  night  to  have  thee  overboard 
To  wrestle,  swimming,  with  the  swirling  sea?" 
"  Nay,"    Paul   said,    "  nay  ;   I  knew   not   that."     He 

spoke 

Without  surprise  couched  in  his  tone ;  far  less. 
Horror  or  fear  expressed  in  look  or  act  ; 
No  sidelong  stab  at  Shimei  from  his  eye ; 


250  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

Only  some  sadness,  with  the  patience,  dashed 

The  weariness  with  which  he  spoke.     "And  yet  — 

And  yet,"  he  added,  half  as  if  he  would 

Extenuate  what  he  could,  "  it  is  his  way, 

The  natural  way  in  which  he  works  his  will. 

His  will  I  well  can  understand,  though  not, 

Not  so,  his  way.     From  that  I  was  averse 

Ever,  but  once  I  had  myself  his  will." 

"  Thou  canst  not  mean  his  will  to  get  Paul  slain," 

Baffled,  the  Roman  said.     "  Nay,  but  his  will 

To  persecute  and  utterly  to  destroy," 

Said  Paul,  "the  Name,  and  all  that  own  the  Name, 

Of  my  Lord  Jesus  Christ  from  off  the  earth." 

At  that  Name,  thus  with  loyal  love  confessed, 
The  hoarded  hatred,  deep  in  Shimei's  heart, 
Toward  Jesus,  which  so  long  had  fed  and  fired 
The  embers  of  the  hatred  his  for  Paul, 
Stirred  angrily ;  it  almost  overcame 
The  cringing  craven  personal  fear  in  him. 
Though  he  indeed  spoke  not,  uttered  no  sound, 
There  passed  upon  his  visage  and  his  port 
A  change,  from  abject  while  malign,  to  look 
Malign  more,  and  less  abject,  fierce  and  fell. 


Book  VIII.       SHIM  El  BEFORE  JULIUS.  251 

It  was  a  strange  transfiguration  wrought, 

An  horrible  redemption  thus  achieved - 

From  what  before  one  only  could  despise 

To  what  one  now,  forsooth,  might  reprobate ! 

The  quite-collapsed  late  liar  and  poltroon 

Rallied  to  a  resistant  attitude, 

Which  stiffened  and  grew  hard  like  adamant, 

While  further  Julius  thus  his  wiles  exposed  : 

"  The  'way  '  of  this  thy  fellow-countryman, 

O  Paul,  thou  hast  yet,  I  judge,  in  full  to  learn. 

When,  by  the  soldier  whom  he  sought  to  bribe 

For  thy  destruction,  of  his  crime  accused 

To  me,  how,  thinkest  thou,  he  would  purge  himself? 

Why,  by  persuading  me  that  Paul,  instead, 

Had  himself  bought  his  keeper  to  forswear 

Against  him,  Shimei,  such  foul  plot  to  slay. 

Hold  I  not  well  thou  hadst  something  still  to  learn 

Of  the  unsounded  depths  his  'way'  seeks  out?" 

Julius  said  this  with  look  on  Shimei  fixed, 
Full  of  the  scorn  he  felt,  each  moment  more. 
Like  the  skilled  slinger  toying  with  his  stone 
Swung  round  and  round  in  air,  full  length  of  sway, 
Through  circles  viewless  swift,  but  in  its  pouch 


252  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VIII. 

Uneasy,  at  his  leisure  still  delayed 

For  surer  aim  and  fiercer  flight  at  last, 

And  that,  the  while,  the  wielder  may  prolong 

Both  his  delight  of  vengeance  tasted  so, 

And  his  foe's  fear  accenting  his  delight ; 

Thus  Julius,  dallying,  teased  to  wrath  his  scorn, 

More  threatening  as  in  luxury  of  reserve 

Suspended  from  the  outbreak  yet  to  fall. 

The  while  the  scornful  Roman's  wroth  regard 
Fixed  as  if  caustic  fangs  upon  the  Jew, 
The  Jew,  with  stoic  endurance,  steeled  himself 
To  take  it  without  blenching.      Full  well  felt 
Through  all  his  members  was  that  branding  look ; 
Though  his  eyes  still  were  downward  bent,  as  when 
He  dropped  them  to  refuse  Paul's  sweet  good  will. 
But  suddenly  now,  he  one  first  furtive  glance 
Lifting,  as  if  unwillingly,  to  Paul, 
Shimei  takes  on  a  violent  change  reverse. 
A  wave  of  abjectness  swept  over  him 
That  drenched,  that  drowned,  his  evil  hardihood 

And  wrecked  him  to  a  ruin  of  himself. 

•> 

Julius  who  saw  this  change  had  also  seen 


Book  VIII.       SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS.  253 

Shimei's  stolen  glance  at  Paul ;  he  himself  now 
Turned  toward  the  apostle  with  inquiring  eye. 

What  he  saw  seized  him  and  usurped  his  mind  — 
His  passion  with  a  mightier  passion  quelled, 
Or  to  another,  higher,  key  transposed : 
The  wrathful  scorn  that  had  toward  Shimei  blazed 
Became  a  rapt  admiring  awe  of  Paul. 
For  there  Paul  stood,  the  meek  and  lowly  mien, 
The  sadness  and  the  patience,  not  laid  by, 
But  an  unconscious  air  of  majesty 
Enduing  him  like  a  clear  transpicuous  veil, 
Self-luminous  so  with  cleansed  indignant  zeal 
For  God  and  truth  and  righteousness  outraged, 
That  he  was  fair  and  fearful  to  behold. 
God  had  made  him  a  Sinai  round  whose  top 
A  silent  thunder  boomed  and  lightnings  played. 
White  holiness  burned  on  his  brow,  a  flame 
The  like  whereof  the  Roman  never  saw 
Glorifying  and  making  terrible, 
Beyond  all  fabled  gods,  the  front  of  man. 

The  exceeding  instance  of  this  spectacle 
It  was,  filling  the  place  as  if  with  beams, 
Not  of  the  day,  but  stronger  than  the  day, 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  VIII. 

That  had  perforce  drawn  Shimei's  eyes  to  see  — 
A  moment,  and  no  more.     As  seared  with  light 
Fiercer  than  they  could  bear,  again  they  fell. 
Then  all  the  man  with  saving  terror  shook 
To  hear  Paul  speak  —  in  tones  wherein  no  ire, 
As  for  himself,  entered,  to  ease  the  weight 
With  which  the  might  of  truth  omnipotent 
Pressed  on  its  victim  like  the  hand  of  God : 
"  Full  of  all  subtlety  and  mischief !     Thou 
Child  of  the  devil,  as  doer  of  his  deeds  ! 
Accursed,  if  thou  hadst  but  plotted  death 
Against  me,  death  however  horrible, 
That  I  had  found  a  light  thing  to  forgive. 
But  to  swear  me  suborner  like  thyself 
Of  perjury"  But  the  denouncer  marked 

How,  under  his  denouncement,  Shimei  quailed: 
He  in  mid  launch  the  fulmination  stayed. 
His  adversary  victim's  broken  plight 
Disarmed  him,  and  a  sad  vicarious  sense 
Of  what  awaited  such  as  Shimei 
Hereafter,  penetrated  to  his  heart. 
As  shamed  from  his  indignant  passion,  Paul 
Instantly  melted  to  a  mood  of  tears. 


Book  VIII         SHIMEI  BEFORE  JULIUS.  255 

This  Shimei  less  could  bear  than  he  had  borne 
Those  terrors  of  the  Lord  aflame  in  Paul. 
The  old  man  shaken  with  so  many  sharp 
Vicissitudes  of  feeling,  sharp  and  swift  :  — 
Hope  from  despair,  despair  again  from  hope; 
Then  fresh  hope  from  the  ashes  of  despair ; 
That  costly  hardening  of  the  heart  with  hate, 
And  steeling,  to  resistance,  of  the  will ; 
Next,  a  soul-cleaving  anguish  of  remorse, 
New  to  him,  mingled  with  forebodings  new, 
Menaces  beckoning  from  the  world  to  come; 
These,  with  the  unimagined  tenderness 
That  now  reached  out  and  touched  him  in  Paul's 

tears  - 

The  old  man,  plied  and  exercised  thus,  broke 
Abruptly  from  the  habit  of  a  life, 
Utterly  broke,  and  suddenly  was  no  more, 
At  least  for  one  sweet  moment  of  release, 
The  hard,  the  false,  the  bitter,  the  malign 
Shimei  of  old — changed  to  a  little  child  ! 
In  both  his  quivering  hands  his  face  he  hid, 
And,  all  his  strength  consumed  to  scarcely  stand, 
Wept,  with  convulsion  poured  from  head  to  foot, 
But  made  no  other  sign,  to  this  from  Paul : 


256  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  VIII. 

"As  I  forgive  thee,  lo,  forgive  thou  me, 

Shimei,  my  brother !     And  Christ  us  both  forgive  !  " 

The  Roman  wondering  saw  these  things  and 

heard, 

Nor  moved  in  speech  or  gesture,  touched  with  awe. 
But  when  now  all  was  acted  so,  and  seemed 
There  nothing  was  to  follow  more,  he  turned, 
And,  not  ungently,  though  with  firm  command, 
Said  to  the  soldier :  "  Lead  him  hence  away 
To  keeping ;  make  his  manacles  secure. 
Thou  wilt  not,  I  suppose,  a  second  time, 
Try  ear  or  tongue  in  parley  —  never  wise. 
Thou  hast  lost  somewhat  in  this  adventure  ;  see 
Thou  win  it  back  with  double  heed  henceforth." 

So  Shimei  went  remanded  to  his  doom, 
With  Paul  and  Stephen  pitying  witnesses. 


BOOK     IX. 
PAUL  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN. 


In  sequel  of  the  tragic  crime  and  doom  that  had  just  been 
witnessed  by  him  in  the  case  of  Shimei,  young  Stephen  is 
drawn  to  resume  with  his  kinsman  Paul  the  topic  of  the 
imprecatory  psalms,  which  they  had  previously  discussed  on 
their  night  ride  from  Jerusalem  toward  Caesarea.  Paul  gently 
lets  his  nephew  unbosom  all  his  heart,  and,  point  by  point, 
meets  the  young  man's  difficulties  with  senior  counsel  and 
instruction. 


PAUL  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN. 

The  brilliant  weather,  with  the  sparkling  sea 
Blue  under  the  blue  heaven  above  it  bowed, 
There  the  great  sun,  his  solitary  state 
Making  his  own  pomp  as  it  moved  along 
In  that  imperial  progress  through  the  skies, 
The  blithe  wind  blowing  in  the  singing  sails, 
And  the  gay  answer  of  the  bounding  bark, 
On  either  hand  bright  glimpses  of  the  shore - 
All  these  things  to  enliven  were  not  enough 
For  that  day's  need  to  Paul  and  those  with  him  : 
They  could  not  rally  to  their  customed  cheer, 
Serious,  not  sad,  although  light-hearted  never. 
The  deed  of  Shimei  and  scarce  less  his  doom 
Still  damped  their  spirits,  so  strung  to  sympathy, 
Till  sunny  day  wore  on  to  starry  night. 

Then,  Paul  and  Stephen  by  themselves  apart 
Resting,  the  younger  to  the  elder  said  : 
"  Much,  O  mine  uncle,  have  I  pondered,  since, 
The  deep  things  that  I  heard  from  thee,  that  night, 
Already  now  so  many  months  ago, 


260  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX 

By  thy  side  riding,  thou  by  Lysias  sent 
(Safeguarded  by  his  Romans  from  the  Jews !) 
To  wear  out  thy  duress  at  Caesarea. 
Thou  wert  then  as  now  escaped  from  Shimei's 

snare ! 

We  spake,  thcu  wilt  remember,  of  those  psalms 
Which  breathe,  or  seem  to  breathe,  such   breath 

of  hate. 

I  had  recited  one  aloud  to  thee  — 
To  myself  rather,  bold,  for  thee  to  hear  — 
Vent  to  the  feeling  fierce  that  in  my  breast 
Boiled  into  tempest  against  Shimei. 
Thou  chidedst  me  with  a  most  sweet  rebuke 
That  drew  the  tumor  all,  out  of  my  heart ; 
Thou  taughtst  me  then  that  the  good  Spirit  of  God, 
Who  breathed  the  inspiration  into  men 
To  utter  such  dire  words,  seeming  of  hate, 
Hated  not  any  as  I  to  hate  had  dared. 
I  understood  thee  that  God  only  so 
Revealed  in  forms  of  vivid  human  speech 
The  implacable  resentment  —  but  I  pause, 
Pause  startled  at  the  word  I  use ;  I  would, 
Could  I,  find  other  than  such  words  as  these, 
'Resentment,'  'indignation,'  'hatred,'  'wrath/ 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  26l 

To  speak  my  thought  of  holy  God  aflame 
With  infinite  clisplacency  at  sin- 
Once  more  !     Another  word  I  fain  would  shun  ! 
For  by  some  tether  that  I  cannot  break, 
Bound,  I  revolve  in  the  same  circle  still." 

As  if  his  speech  were  half  soliloquy, 
The  youth  let  lapse  his  musing  into  mute, 
Which  not  with  word  or  sign  would  Paul  invade. 
Almost  with  admiration,  with  such  joy 
Of  hope  for  Stephen,  Paul  remarked  in  him 
The  noble  gains  of  knowledge  he  had  made  — 
Wisdom  say  rather  out  of  knowledge  won- 
In  those  two  years  at  Csesarea  spent ; 
Years  for  the  youth  so  rich  in  fruitful  chance 
Of  converse  with  his  elders,  and  of  thought 
Which  in  that  quick  young  mind,  for  brooding  apt 
No  less  than  apt  for  action,  brought  to  full 
Sweet  ripeness  all  that  he  from  other  learned, 
And  touched  it  with  a  quality  his  own. 
Paul  could  not  but  in  measure  feel  himself 
Given  back  to  him  reflected  in  the  words 
That  he  just  now  had  heard  from  Stephen's  lips ; 
Yet  he  therein  felt  too  a  surge  of  youth 


262  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX 

And  youth's  unrest  and  eagerness  and  strife 
And  dauntless  heart  to  assay  the  impossible 
Which  were  all  Stephen's.  And  he  held  his  peace. 

Presently  Stephen  took  up  voice  again  : 
"  Almost  I  thus  resolve  myself  one  doubt, 
One  question,  that  I  thought  to  bring  to  thee. 
God  is  not  altogether  such,  I  know, 
As  we  are ;  yet  are  we  too  somewhat  such 
As  He,  for  in  God's  image  were  we  made. 
And  we  perforce  must  know  God,  if  at  all, 
Then  by  ourselves  as  patterned  after  Him. 
So  I  suppose  our  best  similitude 
For  what  God  feels  —  but  '  feeling,'  also  that ! 
How  fast  do  these  anthropomorphic  walls 
Enclose  us  still  in  all  our  thought  of  God  !  — 
'  Feeling '  is  but  a  parable  flung  forth 
By  us,  bridge-builders  on  the  hither  side, 
To  tremble  out  a  little  way  toward  God, 
Then  flutter  helpless  down  in  the  abyss, 
The  impassable  abyss,  of  difference 
Between  created  and  Creator,  us 
And  Him,  the  finite  and  the  Infinite! 
Forgive  me,  but  I  lose  my  way  in  words ! " 


Book  IX.     rAUL  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN.  263 

And  again  Stephen  broke  his  utterance  off, 
Faltering ;  like  one  who  fording  a  full  stream 
Now  in  midcurrent  finds  his  foothold  fail, 
And  cannot  in  such  deepened  waters  walk. 

This  time  Paul  reached  the  struggling  youth  a 

hand 

With:  "Thou  hast  not  ill  achieved  in  thine  essay 
To  utter  what  is  nigh  unutterable. 
But,  Stephen,  better  bridge  than  any  form 
Of  fancy,  figure  or  similitude, 
To  human  sense  or  reason  possible 
And  capable  of  frame  in  human  speech, 
For  spanning  the  great  gulf  immeasurable, 
Unfathomable,  nay,  inconceivable, 
(Gulf,  otherwise  than  so,  impassable, 
Yet  so,  securely  closed  forevermore !) 
The  awful  gulf  of  being  and  of  thought, 
Much  more,  of  moral  difference,  since  our  fall, 
That  parts  our  kind  from  holy  God  Most  High  — 
Yea,  better  bridge  than  any  word  of  ours 
Aspiring  upward  from  beneath  to  God, 
Is  that  Eternal  Word  of  God  Himself 
To  us,  down-reaching  hither  from  above, 


264  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX. 

Who,  being  God  with  God,  was  Man  with  man, 
And  Who,  returning  thither  whence  He  came, 
Carried  our  nature  with  Him  into  heaven, 
And  to  the  Ever-living  joined  us  one. 

"  But  rightly  thou  wert  saying,  my  Stephen, 

that  we 

Best  can  approach  to  put  in  speech  of  man 
The  ineffable  regard  of  God  toward  sin, 
If  we  impute  to  Him  a  spurning  such 
As  we  feel  when  we  hate  or  loathe  or  scorn, 
And  wish  to  wreak  in  punishment  our  wrath. 
But  we  must  purge  ourselves  of  self-regard, 
Or  we  are  sinful  in  abhorring  sin  ; 
And  we  attaint  God  with  gross  attribute 
Imputed  from  what  we  through  fall  became. 
An  horrible  profaneness,  sure,  it  were, 
The  image  first  of  God  in  us  to  foul, 
And  then  that  foulness  back  on  God  asperse, 
Making  Him  hate  with  wicked  human  hate !  " 

The  wide  impersonal  purport  of  Paul's  words, 
Not  meant,  he  knew,  in  hidden  hint  to  him, 
Still,  Stephen  with  his  wise  docile  spirit  took 
Home  to  himself,  and  fell  some  moments  mute, 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  26 

Considering;  then  afresh  his  mind  exposed  : 

"  I  feel,  O  kinsman  most  revered,  how  bold, 

How  froward,  how  perverse,  it  were  in  me, 

First  to  lay  hold  on  holy  words  of  God 

To  use  them,  as  I  used  that  psalm  that  night, 

Profanely  for  a  vehicle  of  hate  ; 

And  then,  convicted  of  my  fault  therein, 

Turn  round  and  blame  the  very  words  I  used, 

Or  seem  to  blame  them,  as  unmeet  from  God. 

Yet  I  experience  an  obscure  distress  — 

Is  it  of  mind  or  heart?     I  scarce  know  which - 

A  sense  of  contradiction  unresolved, 

When,  in  the  spirit  of  all-loving  love, 

Such  as  sometimes  I  seem  to  catch  from  thee, 

I  read  or  ponder  those  terrific  psalms." 

'Thou  art  tempted  then  perhaps,"  gently  said 

Paul, 

Yet  with  some  gentle  irony  implied, 
"To    doff  the  pupil's  lowly  attitude 
In  which  thou  hadst  learned  so  much;  as  if  indeed 
Thou  hadst  learned  enough  to  be  a  teacher  now, 
And  even  a  teacher  to  thy  Teacher,  God? 
Beware,  my  son,  of  these  delusive  thoughts ; 


266  t       THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IX. 

Love  also  has  its  specious  counterfeits  — 
Whence  that  deep  word  of  the  apostle  John, 
So  frequent  on  his  lips,  his  touchstone  word  — 
More  needed,  as,  to  seeming,  needed  not  — 
To  make  us  sure,  when  we  suppose  we  love, 
Whether  we  love  in  truth  :  '  Herein  we  know 
That  we  God's  children  love,  when  we  love  God, 
And  His  commandments  do.      For  this  is  love 
Indeed  of  God,  to  do  His  holy  will ! 
A  childlike  humble  spirit,  the  spirit  of  love, 
Contented  to  believe  and  to  obey  ! 
The  wiser  that  she  seeks  not  to  be  wise, 
She  wins  her  wisdom  by  obedience. 

"  Does  thy  love  puff  thee  up  to  challenge  God 
Whether  He  be  consistent  with  Himself? 
Suspect  '  all-loving  love  '  which  moves  to  that ! 
Love  puffs  not  up  —  right  love,  love  which  is  awe 
(As  ever  love  inbreathed  from  Jesus  is) - 
To  any  pride  of  wisdom  questioning  God. 
Some  specious  counterfeit  it  is  of  love, 
Not  love  herself  —  who  grows  by  meekness  wise 
To  meekness  more,  and  more  obedient  faith  — 
Not  love,  nay,  Stephen,  but  other  spirit  than  love 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  267 

(Self-pity,  self-indulgence,  self-regard, 
Some  spirit  fixing  for  the  center  self), 
That  sits  in  judgment  on  the  ways  of  God 
To  find  Him  sometimes  wise  or  sometimes  not. 
God  was  as  wise  when  He  inspired  those  psalms 
As  when  in  Christ  he  bade  us  ever  love, 
Love  even  our  enemies  and  do  them  good. 
Submit  thyself  to  God,  my  Stephen,  and  be 
Humble  ;  for  God  resists  the  proud,  but  gives 
Grace  to  the  humble  still  and  grace  for  grace  — 
Grace  given  already,  ground  for  added  grace. 
Grow  then  in  grace  thus,  and  be  meekly  wise. 
I  have  spoken  divining  what  thy  meaning  was, 
Perhaps  amiss"   —and  Paul  refrained  from  more. 

But    Stephen    answered :     "If    such   was    my 

thought, 

At  least  I  did  not  know  it  to  be  such, 
As  thou  hast  thus  divined  it  now  for  me. 
Thither  perhaps  it  tended  —  but  that  goal, 
Shown  in  this  light  from  thee,  though  far,  I  shun  ; 
I  would  not  be  more  wise  than  God,  for  God. 
But  is  there  then  no  contrariety 
At  all,  no  spirit  discrepant,  between 


268  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX. 

The  frightful  fulminations  of  those  psalms 
And  the  forgiving  love  of  our  Lord  Christ  ? " 
"None,  Stephen,"  said  Paul,  "for  none  did  Jesus 

know, 

Who  knew  those  psalms  and  never  protest  made 
Against  them,  never  softened  their  austere, 
Their  angry,  aspect,  never  glozed  their  sense, 
Never  one  least  slant  syllable  let  slip, 
Hint  as  that  He  would  not  have  spoken  so, 
Never  with  pregnant  silence  passed  them  by. 
Nay,  of  those  psalms  one  of  the  fiercest,  He  — 
And  this,  then  when  His  baptism  into  death, 
His  offering  of  Himself  for  sin,  was  nigh, 
Those  Feet  already  in  the  crimson  flood  !  — 
Most  meek  and  lowly  suffering  Lamb  of  God, 
Took  to  Himself  to  make  it  serve  His  need 
In  uttering  the  just  horror  of  His  soul 
At  such  hate  wreaked  on  Him  without  a  cause. 
'  Pour  out  Thine  indignation  on  them,  Lord, 
And  let  the  fierceness  of  Thy  wrath  smite  them  ! 
To    their    iniquity    iniquity 
Add   Thou '  —  such   curse   invokes   this   dreadful 

psalm  — 
'  Let  them  be  blotted  from  the  book  of  life ' ! 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STErilEN.  269 

From  close  beside  these  burning  sentences, 
These  drops  of  Sodom-and-Gomorrah  rain, 
Out  of  the  self-same  psalm  with  them,  our  Lord, 
Now  nigh  to  suffer  (saying  to  His  own 
He  as  in  holy  of  holies  with  them  shrined, 
More  heavenly  things  than  ever  even  Himself 
Till  then  had  spoken)  drew  those  words  —  sad  words, 
Stern  words!  — '  They  hated  Me  without  a  cause.' 
Love  shrank  not,  nay,  in  Him,  from  holy  hate! 

"  His  spirit  and  the  spirit  of  those  psalms 
Ever  with  one  another  dwelt  at  peace  ; 
More  than  at  peace,  with  one  another  one 
Were  they,  the  selfsame  spirit  both  ;  as  needs 
Was,  since  the  Spirit  of  all  psalms  was  He. 
Even  thus,  I  have  not  to  the  full  expressed 
The  will,  with  power,  that  in  Christ  Jesus  wrought 
To  fulminc  indignation  against  sin. 
The  psalms,  those  fiercest  and  most  branding,  fail 
To  match  the  fury  of  the  Lamb  of  God 
Poured  out  in  words  of  woe  on  wickedness, 
His  own  words,  burning  to  the  lowest  hell- 
Enraged  eruption  from  the  heart  of  love  ! 
Most  dreadful  of  things  dreadful  that !     A  fire, 


270  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX. 

My  Stephen,  which,  as  loth  to  kindle,  so, 
Once  kindled,  then  will  burn  the  deepest  down  ! 
Woe  the  most  hopeless  of  surcease  or  change  — 
Mercy  herself  to  malediction  moved, 
Love  forced  to  speak  in  final  words  of  hate !" 

An  energy  of  earnest  in  Paul's  voice, 
A  tender  earnest,  full  of  love  and  fear, 
Fear  without  dread,  serene  vicarious  fear 
(Yet  faithful  sympathy  with  God  expressed) 
The  solemn  somber  of  a  lighted  look 
In  him,  reflected  as  from  some  unseen 
Region  where  light  was  more  than  luminous, 
Appalling,  like  the  splendor  of  a  cloud 
Whence  deep  the  thunder  now  begins  to  break — - 
These,  with  his  words  themselves  infusing  awe, 
Made  Stephen  feel  his  heart  in  him  stand  still. 
Both  for  meet  reverence  toward  the  reverend  man 
Who  spake  these  things,  and  likewise  to  assure 
Himself  that  he  in  nothing  failed  the  full 
Sense  and  effect  of  all  that  he  had  heard, 
Stephen  his  hush  awe-struck,  of  thought,  prolonged. 

Then,  partly  from  a  certain  manliness 
Innate  in  him,  inalienably  his, 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  2;i 

Which,  while  of  noble  and  ennobling  awe 

It  made  his  spirit  but  more  capable, 

Yet  kept  him  ever  conscious  of  his  worth, 

And  would  not  suffer  that,  with  any  thought 

Quick  in  him  and  still  seeming  to  him  true 

Or  worthy  to  be  questioned  for  its  truth, 

He  should,  howso  abashed,  abandon  it - 

Partly  self-stayed  so  in  a  constant  mind, 

But  more,  supported  by  his  perfect  trust 

Well-grounded  in  his  kinsman's  gentleness 

And  tact  of  understanding  exquisite, 

Stephen  returned  to  press  his  quest  once  more : 

"  I  must  not  seem  insistent  overmuch, 

O  thou  my  kinsman  and  my  master  dear, 

To  whom  indeed  I  hearken  as  to  one 

Divinely  guided  to  be  guide  to  men  ; 

But  a  desire  to  know  not  yet  allayed, 

Perhaps  I  ought  to  own,  some  haunting  doubt, 

Prompts  me  to  ask  one  question  more  of  thee. 

"  I  know  the  psalms  whereof  we  speak  were  meant, 
As  were  their  fellow  psalms,  each,  not  to  breathe 
The  individual  feeling  of  one  soul 
Whether  himself  the  writer  or  whoso 


272  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IX. 

Might  take  it  for  his  own,  but  to  be  used 

By  the  great  congregation  joining  voice 

In  symphony  or  in  antiphony 

Of  choral  worship,  with  stringed  instruments 

Adding  their  help,  and  instruments  of  wind  : 

So,  most  unmeet  it  were  if  private  grudge 

Of  any  whomsoever,  high  or  low, 

Should  mix  its  base  alloy  with  the  fine  gold 

Of  prayer  and  praise  stored  in  our  holy  psalms 

For  pure  oblation  from  all  holy  hearts 

To  Him,  the  Ever-living  Holy  God. 

The  wicked  and  the  enemy  therein 

Accursed  so  from  good  to  every  bane 

And  ill  here  and  hereafter  following  them 

And  hunting  down  their  issue  to  the  end 

Of  endless  generations  of  their  like - 

These,  I  can  understand,  were  public  foes, 

Not  private,  adversary  heathen  tribes 

That  hated  us  because  they  hated  God 

Who  chose  us  for  His  own  peculiar  race, 

And  swayed  us  weapon  in  His  dread  right  hand 

To  execute  His  judgment  on  His  foes, 

His  foes,  not  ours,  or  only  ours  as  His  — 

'  Them  that  hate  Thee  do  not  I  hate,  O  God  ? ' 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN. 

The  righteous  execration  bursting  forth, 

An  outcry  irrepressible  of  zeal, 

Through  all  the  cycle  of  those  fearful  psalms, 

Not  from  a  heart  of  virulence  toward  men, 

But  from  a  love,  consuming  self,  for  God. 

Such,  I  can  understand,  the  purport  was 

Wherein  Himself,  the  Holy  Ghost  of  God, 

Inspired  those  psalms  and  willed  them  to  be  sung. 

But,  O  my  master,  tell  me,  did  not  yet 

Some  too  importunate  spirit  not  thus  pure, 

Of  outright  sheer  malevolence  some  trace, 

Escape  of  private  malice  uncontrolled, 

Hatred  toward  man  that  was  not  love  for  God, 

On  his  part  who  was  chosen  God's  oracle 

To  such  high  end  and  hard,  enter  the  strain 

He  chanted,  here  or  there,  to  jar  the  tune 

And  of  his  music  make  a  dissonance?" 

Stephen,  as  one  who  had  with  resolute 
Exertion  of  an  overcoming  will 
Discharged  his  heart  with  speech,  let  come  what 

might, 

Rested ;  the  tension  of  his  purpose  still 
Persisting  to  refuse  himself  recoil. 


EPIC  O    PA  UL- 


2  74 

Feeling  his  nephew's  girded  attitude, 

Nowise  resistant,  though  recessive  not, 

Braced  to  keep  staunch  his  standing  where  he  stood, 

Paul  would  not  overbear  it  with  sheer  strength  ; 

Choosing,  with  just  insinuation  wise, 

To  ease  it  through  concession  yielded  him. 

He  said  :  "  My  Stephen  has  pondered  deep  these 

things, 

And  to  result  of  truth  well  worth  his  pains. 
Thou  hast  profited,  my  son,  perhaps  beyond 
Thine  own  thought  of  thy  profiting,  in  sweet 
Acquist  of  wisdom  from  the  mind  of  Christ. 
Fair  change,  change  fair  and  great,  in  thee  since 

when 

Thou  cursedst  Shimei  in  that  bitter  psalm  !  — 
Bitter  from  thee  who  saidst  it  bitterly. 
Behold,  thou  art  fain,  forsooth,  to  find  those  words, 
Those  same  words  now  which  then  thou  likedst  well 
Rolling  them  under  thy  tongue  a  morsel  sweet, 
Almost  too  human  for  at  all  divine. 
Was  there  not  in  them,  this  thou  askest  me, 
Expression  intermixed  of  wicked  hate, 
His  whose  the  occasion  was  to  write  the  psalm? 
The  turns  and  phrases  of  the  speech  wherein 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  275 

The  psalmist  here  or  there  breathes  out  his  soul 
In  malediction,  have  such  force  to  thee, 
Importing  that  his  spirit  let  escape 
A  passion  of  his  own  not  purified 
Amid  the  pressure  and  the  stress  of  zeal 
Inspired  from  God  against  unrighteousness. 

"Well,  Stephen,  the  entrusted  word  of  God 
To  men  is  ours  through  men  and,  men  being  such, 
Why,  needs  we  have  the  priceless  treasure  stored, 
Stored  and  conveyed,  in  vessels  framed  of  clay. 
No  perfect  men  are  found,  were  ever  found  : 
God's  inspiration  does  not  change  men  such. 
His  wisdom  is  to  make  of  men  unwise, 
Of  men,  too,  fallen  far  short  of  holiness, 
Imperfect  organs  of  His  perfect  will. 
Adhesion  hence  of  imperfection,  man's, 
Fast  to  the  letter  of  the  Scripture  clings  ; 
But  it  makes  part  of  His  perfection,  God's, 
Who  knows  us,  and  from  His  celestial  height 
Benignly  earthward  deigning  condescends 
In  terms  of  our  imperfect,  flawed  with  sin 
Even,  the  Divine  inworking  wisdom  loves 
To  teach  us  noble  lessons  of  Himself, 


276  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX. 

Ennobling  us  to  ever  nobler  views 

Of  what  He  is,  so  shadowed  forth  to  us. 


"'Sin,'  that  word  'sin,'  so  weighted  as  we  know 
With  sense,  beyond  communication  deep, 
Of  evil,  of  wrong,  of  outrage,  of  offence 
Toward  God,  and  toward  ourselves  of  injury 
Irreparable  and  growing  ever  great 
And  greater  to  immortal  suicide 
Wreaked  with  incredible  madness  on  the  soul - 
What  is  that  word  in  the  light  shallow  speech 
Of  pagan  Greek?     What  but  a  word  to  mean, 
As  if  of  purpose  to  make  naught  the  blame, 
Simply  the  casual  missing  of  a  mark  ? 
Venial,  forsooth,  merely  an  aim  not  hit  — 
The  aim  right,  but  the  arrow  flying  wide ! 
Into  such  matrix,  shallower  as  would  seem 
Than  could  be  made  capacious  of  such  sense, 
God  must  devise  to  pour  His  thought  of  sin  ! 
But  how  the  thought  has  deepened  since  its  mould, 
Still  vain  to  match  the  sinfulness  of  sin  ! 
Humbleness  —  what  a  virtue,  what  a  grace 
Say  rather,  yet  in  all  the  Greek  no  word 
To  name  it,  till  God's  wisdom  rectified 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN. 


277 


A  word  that  erst  imported  what  was  base, 

Mean,  sordid,  dastard,  unuplifted,  vile 

In  spirit,  pusillanimous,  to  name 

The  lowly  temper,  best  beloved  in  man 

By  God,  the  heavenly  temper  of  His  Son  ! 

The  thought  at  last  is  master  of  its  mould, 

Though  mould  is  needful  for  the  plastic  thought. 

"  In  our  imagination  of  The  True, 
We  climb  as  by  a  ladder,  round  by  round, 
Slowly  toward  Him,  the  Inaccessible, 
Who  dwells  in  a  seclusion  and  remove 
Of  glory  unapproachable,  and  light 
That  makes  a  blinding  darkness  round  His  throne. 
He  stoops  and  finds  and  touches  us  abased 
So  far  beneath  Him  where  we  grovelling  lie; 
Nay,  He  lays  hold  of  us  and  lifts  us  up ; 
With  cords,  so  it  is  written,  of  a  man 
He  draws  us,  blessed  God  !  —  with  bands  of  love, 
Of  love,  the  mightiest  of  His  heavenly  powers ! 
O,  the  depth  fathomless,  the  starry  height, 
The  breadth,  the  length  immeasurably  large, 
Both  of  the  wisdom  and  the  knowledge,  God's ! 
Because,  forsooth,  we  have  some  few  steps  climbed, 


278  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX. 

Shall  we,  proud,  spurn  from  underneath  our  feet 

The  ladder  that  uplifted  us  so  far, 

That  might  have  raised  us  yet  the  full  ascent  ? 

That  ladder  rests  on  earth  to  reach  to  heaven  : 

Let  us  go  on  forever  climbing  higher, 

But  not  forget  the  dark  hole  of  the  pit 

Out  of  which  we  were  digged,  nor,  more,  contemn 

The  way  of  wisdom  thither  reaching  down 

And  thence  aspiring  to  the  topmost  heaven  ; 

Whereby  our  race  may  (so  we  stumble  not 

Through  pride,  or  like  Jeshurun  waxen  fat 

Kick)  reascend  at  length  to  whence  we  fell  - 

Nay,  higher,  and  far  above  all  height  the  highest, 

To  Him,  with  Him,  exalted  to  His  right, 

To   Him,  with   Him,   in    Him,  Lord   Christ,  Who 

rose 

For  us  in  mighty  triumph  from  His  grave, 
Then  reascended  where  He  was  before, 
Ere  the  world  was,  God  with  His  Father  God, 
But  still  for  us ;  and,  still  for  us,  sat  down 
Forever,  in  His  Filial  Godhead  Man, 
Assessor  with  His  Father  on  His  throne, 
Inheriting  the  Name  o'er  every  name 
Ascendant,  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords, 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  279 

And  us  assuming  with  Himself  to  reign  ! 
Amen  !     And  hallelujah  !     And  amen  !  " 

As  one  might  watch  an  eagle  in  his  flight 
That  soared  to  viewless  in  the  blinding  sun  ; 
As   one   might   hearken   while   from   higher   and 

higher 

A  lark  poured  back  his  singing  on  the  ground, 
So  Stephen  gazed,  listening,  with  ecstatic  mind. 

"  Transported  with  delight  I  hear  thee  speak 
Thus,  O  my  reverend  master,  for  with  awe, 
Which  is  delight,  the  deepest  that  I  know  " 
Thus  at  length  Stephen  spoke,  easing  his  mind 
A  little,  with  its  fulness  overfraught. 
"  Doxology  outbreaking  from  thy  lips 
Becomes  them  so  !     The  rapture  of  thy  praise 
Is  as  the  waving  of  a  mighty  wing 
Beside  me  that  is  able  to  upbear 
Me  also  thither  whither  it  will  soar. 
I  am  caught  in  its  motion  and  I  mount 
Unmeasured  heights  as  to  the  heaven  of  heavens. 
Let  me  join  voice  with  thee  and  say,  'Amen  !' 
Not  least  I  love  when  least  I  understand 
Often  thy  high  discourse.     Eluding  me 


280  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IX. 

It  leads  me  yet  and  tempts  me  after  thee, 
Tempts  and  enables,  and,  above  myself, 
I  find  myself  equalled  to  the  impossible  ! 
But  then  when  afterward  I  sink  returned 
To  what  I  was  —  no  longer  wing  not  mine 
To  lift  me  with  its  great  auxiliar  sweep 
Upward  —  I  grope  and  stumble  on  the  ground. 

"  Bear  with  me  that  I  need  to  ask  such  things, 
But  tell  me  yet,  O  thou  who  knowest,  tell  me, 
Am  I  then  right,  and  is  it,  as  thou  seemedst 
To  say  but  saidst  not,  veering  from  the  mark 
When  now  almost  upon  it,  so  I  thought, 
Who  waited  watching  —  did  the  psalmist  old 
Commingle  sometimes  an  alloy  of  base 
Unpurified  affection  with  his  clear 
All-holy  inspiration  breathed  from  God, 
Lading  his  language  with  a  sense  unmeet, 
Personal  spite,  his  own,  for  God's  pure  ire? 
Forgive  me  that  I  need  to  ask  such  things." 

"  Thou  dost  not  need  to  ask  such  things,  my  son," 
Paul  with  a  grave  severity  replied. 
"  To  ask  them  is  to  ask  me  that  I  judge 
A  fellow-servant.     What  am  I  to  judge 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  28l 

The  servant  of  another,  I  who  am 

Servant  myself  with  him  of  the  same  Lord  ? 

I  will  not  judge  my  neighbor  ;  nay,  myself, 

Mine  own  self  even,  I  judge  not  ;  One  is  Judge, 

He  who  the  Master  is,  not  I  that  serve. 

If  so  be,  the  inspired,  not  sanctified, 

Mere  man,  entrusted  with  the  word  of  God- 

Our  human  fellow  in  infirmity, 

Remember,  of  like  passions  with  ourselves  - 

Indeed  in  those  old  days  wherein  he  wrote, 

His  enemies  being  the  enemies  of  the  Lord, 

And  speaking  he  as  voice  at  once  of  God 

And  of  God's  chosen,  His  ministers  to  destroy 

Those  wicked  —  if  so  be  such  man,  so  placed, 

Half  conscious,  half  unconscious,  oracle 

Of  utterance  not  his  own,  did  in  some  part 

That  utterance  make  his  own,  profaning  it, 

To  be  his  vehicle  for  sense  not  meant 

By  the  august  Supreme  Inspiring  Will - 

Whether  in  truth  he  did,  be  God  the  judge, 

Not  thou,  my  son,  nor  I,  but  if  he  did- 

Why,  Stephen,  then  that  psalmist  —  with  more  plea 

Than  thou  for  lenient  judgment  on  the  sin, 

Thine  the  full  light,  and  only  twilight  his, 


282  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IX. 

With  Christ  our  Sun  unrisen  —  the  selfsame  fault 
As  thou,  committed.      Be  both  thou  and  he 
Forgiven  of  Him  with  Whom  forgiveness  is  — 
With  Whom  alone,  that  so  He  maybe  feared  !" 

Abashed,  rebuked,  the  youth  in  silence  stood, 
Musing;  but  what  he  mused  divining,  Paul, 
With  gently  reassuring  speech  resumed, 
Soon  to  the  things  unspoken  in  the  heart 
Of  Stephen  spoke  and  said  :  "  Abidest  still 
Unsatisfied  that  anything  from  God, 
Though  even  through  man,  should  less  than  per 
fect  be, 

Or  anywise  other  than  incapable, 
Than  utterly  intolerant,  of  abuse 
To  purposes  profane?     Consider  this — • 
And  lay  thy  hand  upon  thy  mouth,  nay,  put 
Thou  mouth  into  the  dust,  before  the  Lord- 
That  God  Most  High  hath  willed  it  thus  to  be, 
That  thus  Christ  found  it  and  pronounced  it  good. 
Who  are  we,  Stephen,  to  be  more  wise  than  God, 
Who,  to  be  holier  than  His  Holy  Son  ? " 

"Amen!     Amen!     I  needs  must  say,  Amen  !" 
In  anguish  of  bewilderment  the  youth 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STKrilEN.  283 

Cried  out,  almost  with  sobs  of  passionate 
Submission,  from  rebellion  passionate 
Hardly  to  be  distinguished  ;  "yea,  to  God 
From  man,  ever  amen,  only  amen, 
No  other  answer  possible  to  Him  !- 

*V    A  ^^ 

Who  is  the  potter,  in  Whose  hands  the  clay 
Are  we,  helpless  and  choiceless,  to  be  formed 
And  fashioned  into  vessels  at  His  will  !M 

"  Helpless,  yea,  Stephen,"  Paul  said,  "but  choice- 
less  not ; 

We  choose,  nay,  even,  we  cannot  choose  but  choose  - 

The  choice  our  freedom,  our  necessity  : 

Free  how  to  choose,  we  are  to  choose  compelled. 

We  choose  with  God,  or  else  against  Him  choose. 

Which  wilt  thou,  Stephen?  Thou!  With  Him  or 
against  ? " 

A  struggle  of  submission  shuddered  clown 
To  quiet  in  the  bosom  of  the  youth  - 
Strange  contrast  to  the  unperturbed  repose, 
With  rapture,  of  obedience,  that  meantime, 
And  ever,  safe  within  the  heart  of  Paul 
Breathed  as  might  breathe  an  infant  folded  fast 
To  slumber  in  its  mother's  cradling  arms  ! 


284  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IX. 

* 

So  had  Paul  learned  to  let  the  peace  of  Christ 

Rule  in  his  heart,  a  fixed  perpetual  calm, 

Like  the  deep  sleep  of  ocean  at  his  core 

Of  waters  underneath  the  planes  of  storm. 

And  Stephen  answered  :   "  Oh,  with  God,  with  God  ! 

And  blessed  be  His  name  that  thus  I  choose  !" 

"Yea,  verily,"  Paul  said,  "for  He  sole  it  is 

Who  worketh  in  us,  both  to  will  and  work 

For  the  good  pleasure  of  His  holy  will. 

As  thou  this  fashion  of  obedience 

Obediently  acceptest  at  His  gift, 

So  growest  thou  faithful  mirror  to  reflect 

Clear  to  thyself,  and  just,  the  thought  of  God. 

Thus  thou  mayst  hope  to  learn  somewhat  of  true, 

Of  high  and  deep  and  broad,  concerning  Him, 

Him  and  His  ways  inscrutable  with  us- 

Of  thy  self  emptied,  for  more  room  to  be 

From  God  henceforth  with  all  His  fulness  filled  ! 

"  This  at  least  learn  thou  now,  how  greatly  wise 
Was  God,  by  that  which  was  in  us  the  lowest 
To  take  us  and  uplift  us  higher  and  higher 
Until  those  very  passions,  hate  and  wrath, 
Which  erst  seemed  right  to  us,  as  they  were  dear, 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND  YOUNG  STEl>Hl<.\.  285 

Become,  to  our  changed  eyes  —  eyes,  though  thus 

changed, 

Nay,  as  thus  changed,  sore  tempted  to  be  proud - 
Become  forsooth  unworthy  symbols  even 
To  shadow  God's  displeasure  against  sin. 
To  generation  generation  linked 
In  living  long  succession  from  the  first, 
To  nation  nation  joined,  one  fellowship 
Of  man,  through  clime  and  clime,  from  sea  to  sea  - 
Thus  has  by  slow  degrees  our  human  kind 
Been  brought  from  what  we  were  to  what  we  are. 
Thus  and  no  otherwise  the  chosen  race 
Was  fitted  to  provide  a  welcoming  home, 
Such  welcoming  home  !    on  earth   for  Him  from 

heaven  - 

The  only  people  of  all  peoples  we 
Among  whom  God  could  be  Immanuel 
And  be  in  any  measure  understood, 
Confounded  not  as  of  their  idol  tribes. 
And  we — we  did  not  understand  Him  so 
But  that  we  hissed  Him  to  be  crucified  ! 
So  little  were  we  ready,  and  even  at  last, 
For  the  sun  shining  in  His  proper  strength  ! 
After  slow-brightening  twilight  ages  long 


286  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  IX. 

To  fit  our  blinking  vision  for  the  day, 

The  glorious  sun  arising  blinded  us 

And  maddened  !     We  smote  at  him  in  his  sphere, 

Loving  our  darkness  rather  than  that  light !  " 

Therewith,  as  for  the  moment  lapsed  and  lost 
In  backward  contemplation,  with  amaze 
And  shame  and  grief  and  joy  and  love  and  awe 
And  thanks  commingling  in  one  surge  of  thought 
At  what  he  thus  in  sudden  transport  saw, 
Paul  into  silence  passed,  which  his  rapt  look 
Made  vocal  and  more  eloquent  than  voice. 
This  Stephen  reverenced,  but  at  last  he  said : 
"O  thou  my  teacher  in  the  things  of  God, 
That  riddle  of  wisdom  in  divine  decree 
Whereof  thou  spakest,  the  linking  in  one  chain 
Together,  one  fast  bond  and  consequence, 
Of  all  the  generations  of  mankind 
And  all  their  races  for  a  common  lot 
Of  evil  or  good,  yet  speak,  I  pray,  thereof, 
To  make  me  understand  it  if  I  may. 
Why  should  Jehovah  on  the  children  wreak 
The  wages  of  the  fathers'  wickedness  ? 
Shall  not  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth  do  right  ? 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND  YOUNG  STEPHEN.  287 

Yea,  doubtless,  yea;  but  that  —  how  is  that  right?" 
41  His  way  is  in  the  sea,"  said  Paul,  "  His  path 
In  the  great  waters  !     Would  we  follow  Him, 
His  footsteps  are  not  known  !     Blessed  be  God  !  " 

"  Amen  !     Amen  !     Forevermore  amen  !  " 
As  one  who  bound  himself  with  sacrament, 
Assenting  without  interrupting  said 
Stephen,  and  Paul  went  on  :  "  Yet  this  note  thou  : 
It  is  not  on  the  children,  such  by  blood, 
That  God  will  visit  the  iniquity 
Of  fathers  :  the  children  must  be  such  in  choice 
As  well,  in  spirit,  must  be  the  fathers'  like- 
And  there  another  mystery  !  (for  deep 
Sinks  endless  under  deep,  to  who  would  sound 
The  bottomless  abyss  of  God's  decree)  - 
The  children  ever,  prave  and  prone,  incline 
To  follow  where  the  fathers  lead  the  way  ; 
The  children,  yea,  must  do  the  fathers'  deeds, 
Then  only  share  the  fathers'  punishment. 
This,  by  that  prophet  mouth,  Ezekiel,  God 
Taught  with  expostulation  and  appeal 
Pathetically  eloquent  of  love 
With  longing  in  our  Heavenly  Father's  heart 


288  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  IX. 

That  not  one  human  creature  of  His  hand 
Be  lost,  but  all,  but  all,  turn  and  be  saved. 

"  Nay,  even  from  Sinai's  touched  and  smoking  top 
Was  the  same  sense  of  grace  to  men  revealed. 
For  what  said  that  commandment  threatening  wrath 
Divine,  in  sequel  of  ancestral  sin, 
To  light  on  generations  yet  to  be  ? 
Said  it  not,  '  On  the  children  ? '      Yea,  but  heed, 
It  hasted  to  supply  in  pregnant  words 
Description  of  the  children  thus  accursed  : 
*  On  the  third  generation  and  the  fourth 
Of  them  that  hate  Jehovah'-  -wicked  seed 
Of  wicked  sires,  and  therefore  with  them  well 
Deserving  to  partake  one  punishment. 
And  now  consider  what  stands  written  next. 
Deterrent  menace  done,  to  fend  from  sin, 
Allurement  then,  how  large  !  to  righteousness. 
If  first  the  warning  filled  a  mighty  bound, 
All  bound  the  grace  succeeding  overflowed. 
O,  limitless  outpouring  from  a  full, 
An  overfull,  an  aching,  heart  of  love 
In  God  our  Father  !     Mercy  to  be  shown, 
Not  to  two  generations  or  to  three, 


Book  IX.     PAUL  AND   YOUNG  STEPHEN.  289 

But  to  a  thousand  generations,  drawn, 

A  bright  succession,  to  unending  date, 

Of  them  —  that  'fear  and  worship'?  nay  —  that  love 

God  for  their  Father  and  His  will  observe  ! 

"  But,  Stephen,  enough  for  now  of  such  discourse. 
My  mind  is  helpless  absent  while  we  talk, 
My  heart  being  heavy  with  desire  and  prayer 
And  groanings  from  the  Spirit  unutterable 
For  Shimei  in  his  noisome  dungeon  pent. 
I  have  sung  praises  in  worse  stead  than  his, 
Christ  in  me  joyance  and  the  hope  of  glory : 
But,  chafed  with  fetters  and  with  manacles, 
And  worse  bonds  wearing  of  iniquity, 
He  sits  unvisited  of  this  fair  light, 
A  midnight  of  no  hope  within  his  heart. 
Go  pray  for  Shimei  thou,  and  leave  me  here 
To  pray,  if  haply  God  will  touch  his  heart." 

So  they  two  fell  apart  and  mightily  strove 
Together  in  intercession  and  one  prayer. 


BOOK    X. 
RE-EMBARKED. 


Arrived  at  Myra  on  their  way  toward  Rome,  Paul  and  his 
companions  are  transferred  to  a  different  vessel  to  pursue 
their  voyage.  The  new  vessel  is  from  Alexandria:  it  brings 
thence  as  passengers  for  Rome  two  mutual  friends,  one  of 
them  a  Roman,  the  other  a  Buddhist  from  India  named 
Krishna.  Rachel,  having  seen  Paul  and  the  Roman  greet 
each  other  as  old  acquaintances,  soon  inquires  apart  of  Paul 
who  the  Roman  is,  and,  learning,  is  thence  drawn  on  into 
exchange  of  reminiscence  and  reflection  with  her  brother. 
The  two  at  length  unite  in  interceding  with  Julius  on  behalf 
of  Shimei.  They  secure  for  him  the  freedom  of  the  deck. 


RE-EMBARKED. 

Where  on  the  towering  shore  a  mighty  gorge 
Breaks  headlong  through  the  mountains  to  the  sea, 
And  a  deep  stream  into  a  haven  large 
Spreads  for  the  welcome  of  all  ships  that  sail 
The  Mediterranean  ocean,  there  of  old 
Myra,  metropolis  of  Lycia,  sat ; 
Mart  once  of  many  meeting  nations  —  now 
A  few  colossal  shadows  sign  and  say 
Mutely,  '  Here  Myra  was,  and  she  was  great ! ' 

At  Myra  safe  arrived  and  anchor  cast, 
That  Adramyttian  vessel  disembarked 
Her  voyagers  bound  to  Rome,  and  went  her  way 
When  she  at  Caesarea  touching  found 
That  Jewish  prisoner  there  and  bore  him  thence, 
She  had  suddenly  gone  sailing  unaware, 
In  transit  as  of  star  athwart  the  sun, 
Into  the  solar  light  of  history ; 
At  Myra  parting  with  him  she  passed  on 
Into  the  rim  of  dark  and  disappeared ; 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 

A  moment  in  a  light  she  guessed  not  of 
Illuminated  for  all  time  to  see, 
Then  heedless  dipping  deep  her  plunging  keel 
And  foundering  in  the  gulfs  of  the  unknown ! 

A  bark  of  Egypt  seeking  Italy, 
Wheat-laden  of  the  fatness  of  the  Nile, 
Swung  resting  in  the  Myra  roadstead  nigh. 
Hereon  were  re-embarked  that  company, 
Paul,  and   the   friends   that   sailed   with    Paul   to 

Rome  - 

Fallen  Felix  too,  with  his  wife  spurring  him 
To  hope  yet  and  to  strive  and  still  be  strong. 
Alexandreia  sent  the  vessel  forth, 
City  twice  famous,  joining  to  her  own 
The  august  tradition  of  her  founder's  fame, 
The  mighty  Macedonian's  mightier  son, 
Great  Alexander  who  the  whole  world  gained 
Indeed  —  with  what  for  profit  of  it  all? 
At  this  sea-gate  wide  opening  to  the  West, 
From  all  the  East  men  met  and  hence  dispersed  — 
That  current  laden  most  which  drew  to  Rome. 
Besides  from  Egypt  her  hierophants, 
Hence  thither  flocked  those  worshippers  of  fire 


Book  X.  RE- EM  HARK  ED. 

From  Persia  holding  Zoroaster  sage, 
Astrologers  of  Assyria,  and  from  Ind 
Confessors  of  the  somber  faith  of  Buddh 

Of  many  such  as  these  on  board  that  bark 
One  Indian  Buddhist  votary  there  was 
Worthy  of  note  :  a  gentle-mannered  man 
Deep  in  himself  involved,  as  who  mused  much 
Of  hidden  things  and  hard  to  understand, 
The  pathos  of  the  mystery  of  the  world, 
The  human  strife,  with  the  defeat  foregone 
Companioning  the  strife  and  ending  it- 
Yet  ending  not  a  strife  that  could  not  end, 
But  ever,  round  and  round,  one  dull  defeat, 
Trod  the  treadmill  of  fate,  no  hope,  no  goal. 
A  gentle-mannered  man,  but  sad  of  cheer, 
Krishna  his  name,  pilgrim  of  many  climes, 
Not  idly  curious  to  behold  and  learn, 
But  hiding  pity  in  his  heart  for  men 
Seen  everywhere  the  same,  poor  blinded  moles 
Toiling  and  moiling  in  the  sunless  mines 
Of  being,  where  no  joy,  whence  no  escape. 
Escape  none,  or,  if  any,  then  escape 
Impossible  to  win  except  by  slow, 


295 


296 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 


And  unimaginably  slow,  process 

Of  suicide  to  endless  date  prolonged, 

y£ons  on  aeons  following  numberless, 

And  fatal  transmigrations  of  the  soul 

From  state  to  state,  from  form  to  form,  of  self  : 

Yet  progress  none  that  might  be  felt  the  while, 

But  one  long-drawn  monotony  instead 

Of  labor  waste  in  movement  seeming  vain, 

Cycles  of  change  returning  on  themselves 

Forever,  bound  to  orbits  that  revolve 

Eternal  repetitions  of  the  same 

Vicissitude  (the  weaver's  shuttle  flung 

Tediously  back  and  forth  from  hand  to  hand 

Or  swinging  pendulum),  'twixt  death  and  birth, 

Lapses  from  misery  to  misery 

Always,  prospect  like  retrospect  stretched  out 

To  vista  and  perspective  vanishing 

Of  path  to  be  pursued  and  still  pursued 

By  the  undaunted  seeker  of  an  end- 

He  by  his  own  act  dying  all  the  time 

In  ceaseless  effort  utterly  to  cease, 

Will  willing  not  to  will,  desire  desiring 

To  be  desire  no  more,  pure  apathy, 

No  hope,  no  fear,  no  motion  of  the  mind, 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED.  297 

Until,  through  dull  disuse  and  atrophy, 
Extinguished  be  capacity  itself 
To  do  or  suffer  anything,  and  so, 
Down  sinking  through  the  bottomless  abyss 
Of  being,  at  last  the  fugitive  go  free, 
Emancipate  but  by  becoming  —  naught ! 
Krishna  thus  deeming  of  his  fellow-men, 
Their  present  and  their  future  and  their  fate, 
Hid  a  vast  pity  in  his  heart  for  them, 
Pity  the  vaster  that  he  could  not  help. 

This  melancholy  man  compassionate, 
Who  might  in  musing  to  himself  seem  lost, 
Yet  saw  and  heard  with  vigilant  quick  sense 
Whatever  passed  about  him  where  he  stood, 
Or  where  he  sat  —  for  most  he  moveless  sat, 
Moveless  and  silent,  on  the  swarming  deck. 
One  man  indeed  he  spake  with,  yet  with  him 
His  speech,  grave  ever,  he  spared,  and  sheathed  in 

tones 

Soothingly  soft  and  low  like  blandishment. 
That  one  man  was  a  Roman  ;   Roman  less 
To  seeming  than  cosmopolite  —  his  air 
An  air  of  long-accustomed  conversance 


298  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  X. 

With  whatsoever  might  be  seen  and  learned 

Through  much  Ulyssean  wandering  to  and  fro 

And  up  and  down  among  his  fellow-men, 

And  watching  of  their  works  and  words  and  ways. 

This  Roman  citizen  of  the  world,  mailed  proof 

In  habit  of  a  full-experienced  mind 

Against  commotion  from  surprise,  was  now 

Visibly  moved  to  wonder  seeing  Paul. 

His  wonder  checked  with  reverence  and  with  love 

Indignant  to  behold  the  captive  state 

Of  one  deserving  rather  wreath  than  bond, 

He  stepped  toward  Paul  and  with  such  homage  paid 

As  liege  to  lord  might  pay  saluted  him. 

"Grace  unto  thee,  my  brother,"  answered  Paul, 

"  From  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  thy  Lord  and  mine  ! " 

They  twain  fell  on  each  other's  neck  and  kissed 

With  tears.     Such  salutation  and  embrace  - 

No  more ;  but  this  with  variant  mood  was  marked 

By  three  that  saw  it.     The  centurion 

Blent  in  his  look  pleasure  with  his  surprise ; 

But  Felix  and  Drusilla  frowned  askance 

(They  also  knowing  the  Roman,  as  at  court 

Courtiers  know  one  another  —  without  love)  ; 

Those  frowned  askance,  and  mixed  their  mutual  eyes 


Book  X.  K1-:  /•:. !//>'.  IK  A'  /:'/>. 

In  sinister  exchange  of  look  malign 
Portending  sequel  if  the  chance  should  serve  ; 
And  in  Neronian  Rome  the  happy  chance 
Of  mischief,  but  be  patient,  scarce  could  fail  ! 

That  gentle  Indian  with  his  pregnant  eye 
Saw  all  and  mused  it  —  then,  and  after,  long- 
The  cheerful,  joyful,  reverent  greeting  given 
A  Jewish  prisoner  by  a  Roman  lord 
And  by  the  Jewish  prisoner  so  returned 
In  unaccustomed  words  ill  understood 
But  solemn  like  the  language  of  a  spell ; 
This,  with  the  Roman  captain's  look  benign 
Approving  what  surprised  him  yet ;  nor  less, 
The  menace  of  the  mutual  scowls  that  met 
Darkening  each  other  on  the  alien  brows 
Of  Felix  and  Drusilla  at  the  sight  — 
Most  like  two  clouds  that,  black  already,  blown 
Together,  shadow  into  a  deeper  dark  ! 

In  due  time,  anchor  weighed  with  choral  sound 
Of  sailors'  voices  cheering  each  himself 
And  each  his  fellow  in  a  formless  tune, 
The  ship  from  out  the  haven  slowly  slid, 
Urged  with  the  oar  but  wooing  too  the  wind 


299 


300  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 

With  slack  sail  doubtful  drooping  by  the  mast. 

Large  planes  of  lucid  ocean  tranced  in  calm 

They  traversed  with  loth  labor  of  the  oar, 

Or  else  were  buffeted  of  winds  that  blew 

Thwart  or  full  opposite  day  after  day, 

While    they    hugged    close    the   Asian    shore,    then 

Rhodes 

Saw  southward,  mooring  fair  her  fruitful  isle. 
The  leisures  long-drawn-out  of  those  delays, 
To  Paul  and  to  his  friends  were  prize  and  spoil. 
Grown  wonted  to  the  sway  of  wind  and  wave, 
They  spent,  cradled  at  grateful  ease,  the  slow, 
Soft-lapsing,  indistinguishable  hours 
That  wore  the  sunny  summer  season  out, 
In  various  converse  or  communion  sweet 
Oft  with  mere  sense  of  mutual  nearness  nursed. 

"Who  was  that  kindly  courteous  gentleman/ 
Thus  at  fit  moment  Rachel  asked  of  Paul, 
"  That  spoke  so  fair  my  brother  coming  up? 
Roman  he  seemed,  and  lordly  was  his  air ; 
Yet  something  other,  sweeter,  differenced  him 
From  his  compatriot  peers,  and  I  observed 
Thou  gavest  him  thy  grace  from  Christ  the  Lord." 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED.  3 

"That,  Rachel,"  Paul   replied,  "was  one   I 

knew- 

Almost  mightst  thou  have  known  him — long  ago 
In  Tarsus  ;  we  were  boys  together  there. 
But  since  then  twice,  with  now  this  added  time, 
Has  God  in  wisdom  made  our  pathways  meet. 
That  Roman  to  Damascus  went  with  me 
And  saw,  what  time  the  glory  of  the  Lord 
Blinded  me  to  behold  at  last  the  True. 
But  him  that  glory,  seen  not  suffered,  left 
For  outward  vision  what  he  was  before, 
While  inwardly  with  denser  darkness  blind, 
Reclaimed  from  atheism  to  idolatry  ! 
But  God  had  mercy  on  him  ;  years  went  by, 
And  I,  with  Barnabas  to  Cyprus  come, 
Found  there  this  selfsame  Roman,  governor. 
The  skeptic  whom  theophany  had  made 
Religious  not,  but  superstitious,  now 
Led  captive  of  delusion — worldly-wise 
Albeit  he  was,  yet  unto  God  a  fool  !- 
Was  given  up  wholly  dupe  and  devotee 
Of  a  deceiver,  Jew,  Bar-jesus  named, 
Pretender  to  the  gift  of  prophecy. 
This  sorcerer  dared  withstand  us  to  the  face 


302 


THE  EPIC  OP  PA  UL.  Book  X. 


Before  the  governor,  who  had  summoned  us 

(Not  dreaming  whom  he  summoned  summoning  me) 

To  tell  him  of  the  word  of  God.      But  I, 

Filled  with  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  —  mine  eyes 

On  him,  that  sorcerer,  fastened  —  uttered  words 

Which  God  the  Faithful  followed  with  such  blast 

And  blight  of  blindness  on  the  wretched  man 

That  he  groped  seeking  who  would  lead  him  thence. 

The  governor  beheld  and  wonder-struck 

To  see  God's  work  God's  word  at  last  believed. 

The  pagan  playmate  of  my  boyhood  so 

Became  the  changed  soul  thou  hast  seen  him  here, 

In  Jesus  brother,  loving  and  beloved  ; 

And  Sergius  Paulus  thou  his  name  mayst  call." 

"  O  Saul,"  said  Rachel,  "  in  what  history 
Of  marvel  following  marvel  has  thy  life, 
Since  when  that  noon  Christ  met  thee  in  thy  way 
Damascus-ward,  been  portioned  out  to  thee  ! 
The  stories  of  the  prophets  old  whom  God 
Wrought  through  to  show  His  people  how  behind 
The  thick  veil  of  His  outward  handiwork 
He  Himself  lived  and  was  a  present  God  — 
Those  tales  of  wonders,  let  me  own  it,  Saul, 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED.  303 

Had  grown  to  me  to  seem  so  far  away 
From  our  time,  and  so  alien  from  the  things 
We  with  our  eyes  behold,  hear  with  our  ears, 
Much  more,  with  these  our  hands  perform,  that  I 
Almost  had  fallen,  not  into  disbelief 
(Not  that,  ever,  I  trust  —  nay,  God  forbid  !) 
Concerning  them,  but  into  a  listless  mind 
Which  to  itself  no  image  of  them  framed  - 
Fault  well-nigh  worse  than  outright  disbelief ! 
That  now  the  things  themselves,  nay,  things  more 

strange, 

Should  be  by  God  repeated  in  the  world, 
Nor  only  so,  that  one  of  mine  own  blood, 
My  brother,  should  a  chosen  vessel  be 
Of  this  great  grace  of  God  through  Christ  to  men- 
This  less  with  wonder  than  with  awe  fills  me, 
And  I  —  believe  not,  faith  were  name  too  faint 
For  passion  such  as  mine  is  —  I  adore  !  " 

Paul  bent  on  Rachel  eyes  unutterable 
Wherein  a  sense  of  sympathy  serene 
Betwixt  himself  and  her  he  talked  with,  shone, 
And  they  twain  dwelt  in  a  suspense  supreme, 
Silent,  of  adoration  where  they  stood- 


304  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  Book 

The  rapture  of  doxology  unbreathed 

To  either  doubled  as  by  other  shared. 

At  length  Paul  spoke  ;  his  tones  intense  and  low 

Thrilled  through  the  ear  of  Rachel  to  her  heart : 

"  O  Rachel,  He  who  out  of  darkness  once 

Bade  the  light  shine,  God,  shined  into  our  hearts 

Enkindling  there  this  dayspring  from  on  high, 

This  light  of  knowing  from  the  face  of  Christ 

The  glory  inexpressible  of  God  !  " 

A  pause  once  more  of  rapt  communion  ;  then 
This  added  in  a  chastened  other  strain  : 
"  But  we  such  treasure  have  in  urns  of  clay 
Fragile  and  nothing  worth  that  all  in  all 
The  exceeding  greatness  of  the  power  may  be 
Not  of  ourselves  but  ever  only  God's  ! 
Constrained  I  find  myself  in  every  way, 
But  straitened  not  ;  perplexed,  but  not  dismayed  ; 
Hunted,  but  not  forsaken  ;  smitten  down, 
But  not  destroyed  ;  forever  bearing  round 
Within  the  body  wheresoever  driven 
The  dying  of  the  Lord,  that  the  Lord's  life 
May  also  in  my  body  forth  be  shown. 
Therefore  I  faint  not ;  let  my  outward  man 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED. 

Fail,  if  it  must,  my  inward  man  meantime 

Is  day  by  day  in  fadeless  youth  renewed. 

How  light  affliction  sits  upon  my  heart! 

It  is  but  for  a  moment,  and  it  works 

The  while  for  me  an  ever-growing  weight 

Of  glory  fixed  forever  to  be  mine ! 

I  look  no  longer  on  the  things  about 

Me,  seeming  to  be  real,  since  they  are  seen, 

But  far  away  instead,  far,  far  away 

Beyond  these,  at  the  things  that  are  not  seen. 

These  for  a  season,  Rachel,  the  things  seen  ! 

But  those,  the  things  not  seen,  eternal  they  ! 

"When  I  saw  Stephen  upward  into  heaven 
Gaze,  and  behold  there  what  no  eye  might  see, 
The  glory  of  the  Ever-living  God, 
And  Jesus  standing  by  His  Father's  side; 
When  afterward  I  saw  Hirani  stand 
Before  the  anger  of  the  Sanhedrim, 
His  eyes  not  seeing  what  their  faces  looked, 
His  ears  not  hearing  what  the  voices  round 
Were  saying  and  forswearing  to  his  harm, 
But  steadfastly  his  vision  fixed  afar 
And  all  his  hearkening  bent  for  sounds  unheard, 


305 


306  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 

Sights,  sounds,  sent  couriers  from  the  world  to 

come, 

The  real  world,  the  eternal,  and  the  blest  — 
How  little  knew  I  then  what  now  I  know  ! 
O  Rachel,  why  was  I  not  then  disturbed 
With  doubts  and  fears,  and  guesses  of  the  true? 
The  darkness  of  that  hour  before  the  dawn  ! 
The  brightness  of  this  full-accomplished  day  1 
The  glory  of  that  other  day  that  waits ! 
The  Jacob's  ladder  and  the  shining  rounds  ! 
The  moving  pomps  of  angels  up  and  down 
Ascending  and  descending  the  degrees 
Betwixt  the  heights  of  heavenly  and  my  feet ! 

"  Now  unto  Him  that  in  such  darkness  died, 
But  rose  amid  such  brightness  from  the  tomb 
And  reascended  where  He  was  before 
To  glory  inaccessible  with  God, 
And  there  expects  until  He  thither  bring 
Us  also  both  to  witness  and  to  share 
His  exaltation  to  the  almighty  throne - 
To  our  Lord  Christ,  Redeemer  by  His  blood, 
Worthy,  and  only  worthy,  to  receive 
Ascription  without  measure  of  men's  praise, 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED.  307 

Be  honor,  worship,  thanks,  obedience,  paid, 
And  love,  even  love  like  His,  forevermore !  " 

Rachel  had  barely  to  her  brother's  words 
Breathed  fervently  her  low  amen,  when  he, 
The  passion  of  doxology  unspent 
Yet  quivering  in  his  tones,  went  on  and  said  : 
"  But,  Rachel,  all  amid  this  strain  of  joy 
Exulting  like  a  fountain  in  my  heart- 
Unspeakable  and  full  of  glory  indeed, 
As  Peter  matched  it  with  his  mighty  phrase  !- 
Yea,  in  it,  as  if  of  it  and  the  same, 
I  feel  a  sense  of  pathos  and  of  pain 
And  hint  of  earthly  with  the  heavenly  mixed. 
I  cannot  but  of  Shimei  think,  and  grieve  — 
The  grief  indeed  a  paradox  ofjoy, 
Such  pity  and  such  anguish  of  desire 
To  help  and  save  !     Can  we  not  succor  him  ? 
Can  we  not  have  him  forth  of  his  duress 
In  dungeon  into  this  fair  light  of  day? 
I  feel  it  must  be  possible.     Pray  thou, 
And  I  will  pray,  and  haply  God  may  touch 
The  heart  of  Julius  to  such  act  of  grace 
That  at  our  suit  and  intercession  he 


3o8 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 


Will  bid  the  wretched  bondman  up  again 

Out  of  the  noisome  darkness  where  he  pines, 

If  to  full  freedom  not,  at  least  to  breathe 

The  freshness  of  the  unpolluted  air 

And  feel  the  force  of  the  reviving  sun. 

Sick  he  may  be,  in  prison  is,  we  know, 

And  neighbor  let  us  count  him,  taught  of  Christ 

To  hold  for  neighbor  any  who  in  need 

Is  nigh  enough  to  us  for  us  to  help. 

Sick  and  in  prison  Jesus  we  might  find 

In  Shimei,  if  for  Jesus'  sake  we  go 

And  carry  him  the  solaces  of  love  !  " 

"  But  he,  will  he  receive  what  we  should  bring?" 
Said  Rachel;  "would  not  bitter-making  thought 
Welling  up  in  him  like  a  secret  spring 
Of  brackish  issue  gushing  from  beneath 
A  crystal  runlet  pure  as  Siloa's  brook, 
Turn  for  him  all  our  sweetness  into  gall  ?  " 

"  Perhaps,  perhaps,"  said  Paul ;  "we  cannot  know. 
That  were  for  thee  and  me  defeat  indeed  — 
To  be  of  evil  overcome  !     But,  nay, 
Nay,  Rachel,  let  us  hope,  and  overcome 
Evil  with  good.     What  is  impossible? 


Book  X.  REr-&MBAXKED.  309 

Is  this,  even  this,  impossible  —  through  Christ? 

Love,  if  love  perfect  be,  hopeth  all  things. 

There  is  in  love,  as  John  delights  to  say, 

No  fear ;  for  perfect  love  casteth  out  fear. 

Perfect  our  love,  be  faithless  outcast  fear 

No  counsellor  of  ours ;  but  hope  instead 

Far-seeing,  with  her  forward-looking  eyes 

Reflecting  hither  light  from  that  beyond. 

Hope  maketh  not  ashamed,  because  the  love 

Of  God  is  poured  forth  in  our  hearts  a  stream, 

An  overflowing,  like  the  river  of  God, 

Feel  from  the  fulness  of  the  Holy  Ghost ! 

O,  how  omnipotent  I  feel  in  him  ! 

But,  behold,  Julius  !      Let  me  speak  straightway  !  " 

"  O  thou,  my  keeper"  —so  to  Julius  Paul- 
"  Full  courteous  to  thy  prisoner  often  proved, 
Nay,  more  than  courteous,  kind  —  beseech  thee  now 
Beyond  thy  wont  be  courteously  kind  !  " 
"What  wilt  thou,  then?"   said  Julius.      "  Grant  it 

me," 
Paul  answered,  "  to  reprieve,  from   chains,  I   ask 

not, 
But  from  his  dungeon  doom,  to  see  the  sun 


3io 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 


And  breathe  this  vital  air,  the  wretched  man 
Whom,  partly  for  my  sake  perhaps,  thou  keepest 
Immured  in  dismal  dark  duress  below  !" 

"Strange  being  thou  !"  said  Julius  answering 

Paul, 

Yet  answering  not,  with  wonder  overpowered. 
11  That  wretch,  that  miscreant,  craven,  liar,  proved 
Corrupter  of  the  faith  of  men  through  bribe  — 
Nay,  but  assassin,  only  that  he  failed, 
Assassin  disappointed  in  attempt  — 
On  whose  life  but  thine  own? — such  man  accurst 
Do  I  now  hear  thee  interceding  for, 
Thee,  prisoner  thyself,  and  that  —  unless 
The  story  of  his  plot  and  traitorhood 
And  band  of  forty  sworn  conspirators 
Against  thee  at  Jerusalem,  have  been 
Falsely  told  me  —  aye,  that  solely  through  him! 
I  wonder  at  thee  !     Art  thou  mad  ?     The  day 
Thy  countryman  confronted  by  thee  quailed, 
Convicted  of  his  dastard  perjury 
Which  aimed  to  make  thee  murderer  of  him  — 
Then,  Paul,  I  thought  thee  sane  enough,  as  thou 
With  words  launched  like  the  thunderbolts  of  Jove 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED.  3, 

Didst  rive  him  to  his  rotten  innermost ! 

Yet  then,  even  then,  relenting  strangely,  thou 

Didst  melt  the  hardness  that  became  thee  so- 

Making  thee  almost  Roman,  as  I  thought  - 

Melt  it  into  a  softness  like  a  woman's. 

And  now  again  from  thee  this  wanton  whim 

And  suit  of  pity  for  that  damnable! 

I  cannot  make  thee  out  —  unless  it  be 

Thou  art  moonstruck,  and  maudlin-mindedness 

At  times  seize  thee  betraying  thy  manhood  thus  !" 

Paul  did  not  answer  the  centurion's  words 
With  words  again  ;  instead  —  with  look  serene, 
Ascendant,  irresistible  —  received, 
Absorbed,  and  overbore  that  other's  look 
(Which,  after  the  words  spoken,  rested  on 
Paul's  face  in  pity  that  was  almost  scorn) 
Quenching  it  as  a  shield  a  fiery  dart ; 
Till  Julius,  fain  to  yield  yet  somewhat  save 
His  pride  in  yielding,  turned  from  Paul  and  said 
To  Rachel,  as  in  condescension  dashed 
With  banter  :  "  Let  thy  sister  if  she  will 
Go  carry  Shimei  tidings  of  reprieve ; 
A  sister  to  a  brother's  murderer  go 


3I2 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 


And  take  him  token  of  her  love  —  and  his!" 
A  little  softening,  as  he  spoke,  from  sneer, 
At  the  sheer  aspect  of  her  loveliness, 
An  aspect  not  of  weakness,  but  wherein 
There  mingled,  with  the  lovely  woman's  charm, 
Something  august  of  saintly  matronhood, 
Remote  from  any  hint  of  what  could  seem 
Defect  of  sane  and  saving  self-control  — 

o 

Thus  wrought  upon  a  little  while  he  spoke, 
Julius  to  Rachel  turning  spoke  such  words. 

"All  thanks,"  she  gently  said,  "  thou  art  most 

kind. 

It  shall  be  as  thou  sayest,  for  I  will  go." 
She  turned,  but  hung  in  action,  as  through  doubt ; 
With  artless  art  of  hesitation  sweet 
Beyond  persuasion  eloquent,  she  said  : 
"Yea,  thou  art  good,  and  gladly  will  I  go, 
But  I  —  I  am  a  woman — -were  it  meet?  — 
If  thou  declarest  it  meet,  then  it  shall  be, 
And  thither  will  I  venture  down  alone  ; 
For  God  will  round  me  globe  an  angel  guard 
To  treasure  me  from  peril  and  from  soil." 

Her  grace,  but  more  her  graciousness,  prevailed; 


Book  X.  RE-EMBARKED.  313 

For  won  upon  by  her  demeanor  meek, 

Majestic,  and  that  awe  of  womanhood 

Instinctive  in  a  noble  breast  of  man, 

The  Roman,  with  even  a  flush  of  shame  at  last 

Not  altogether  hidden  as  he  turned 

His  bronzed  cheek  away,  spoke  out  aloud: 

"  Varenus  !  M  so  he  called  the  soldier's  name 

\Yhose  turn  it  was  that  watch  to  sentry  Paul- 

The  same  that  Shimci  late  had  sought  to  bribe 

"  Go  bid  up  Shimei  hither  from  the  hold ! " 

Haggard,  dejected,  squalid  from  the  filth 
And  fetor  of  his  dungeon,  in  surprise 
With  terror,  doubting  what  awaited  him  — 
Dazed  in  the  sudden  light  his  blinking  eyes- 
The  more  bewildered  that  he  could  not  frame 
With  any  true  and  steady  sight  to  see 
Color,  or  shape,  of  person  or  of  thing 
Before  him  or  about  him  anywhere, 
Shimei  stepped  halt  and  staggering  on  the  deck. 
A  spectacle  for  pity  to  abhor, 
And  for  abhorrence  shuddering  to  behold 
With  pity  —  wreck  and  remnant  of  a  man  ! 
The  soldier  would  not  touch  to  steady  him, 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  X. 

But  let  him  shuffle  as  he  might  his  way. 
Scarce  more  than  one  or  two  uncertain  steps, 
And  Shimei  insecure  of  standing  stood, 
Shaken  in  all  the  fabric  of  the  man  — 
Like  some  decrepit  crazy  edifice 
Wind-shaken  trembling  on  the  point  to  fall. 

Paul  saw,  and  felt  his  heart  within  him  moved. 
To  the  unmoved  centurion  thus  he  spoke : 
"  Wilt  thou  not  let  him  rest  awhile  retired 
Apart  a  little  till  his  force  revive 
And  his  eyes  grow  rewonted  to  the  light  ?" 
"  Have  thou  thy  will  with  him,"  the  Roman  said, 
"  So  far  as  of  his  chains  to  ease  him  not. 
Thou  art  right  perhaps  ;  a  little  added  strength 
Were  well,  were  timely,  in  his  present  plight  — 
May  save  him  over  to  added  punishment. 
So  nurse  him  fair,  ye  brotherhood,"  said  he, 
"And  sisterhood,  of  mercy  ill-bestowed  !" 
And  round  the  Roman  glanced,  with  Roman  scorn 
Masking  some  sense  of  admiration  shamed, 
Upon  the  group  of  ready  hearts  and  hands, 
The  circle  of  Paul's  fellowship  in  faith, 
Now  gathered  nigh  with  looks  of  wish  to  help. 


BOOK     X  I. 
THE  LAST  OF  SHIMEI. 


Shimei  in  his  feebleness  and  distress  is  ministered  to  by 
the  companions  of  Paul.  Thus  relieved,  he  falls  asleep  and 
dreams.  On  his  waking,  ministration  to  his  needs  is  renewed  ; 
and,  strengthened  now  with  nourishment,  he  sleeps  out  the 
night.  The  next  morning  he  finds  himself  an  altered  man. 
He  at  length  makes  some  loth  acknowledgment  to  Paul,  who 
in  turn  expresses  his  own  sorrow  for  high  words  spoken  in 
pride  against  Shimei.  A  storm  some  days  after  rises,  and 
Shimei  meets  a  sudden  and  awful  doom. 


THE  LAST  OF  SHIMEI. 

A  parable  in  life  of  perfect  love 
(Other  than  was  in  heaven  to  be  beheld), 
The  clustering  angels,  crowded  nigh  to  see, 
Saw  in  the  things  that  then  and  there  befell. 
It  might  indeed  have  been  a  scene  let  down 
Suddenly  from  above  in  lively  show 
Of  love  in  act  on  earth  like  love  in  heaven  — 
Only  that  never  in  heaven  is  need  of  act, 
From  love,  of  mercy  such  as  now  was  seen, 
A  living  picture,  on  that  vessel's  deck  ! 

Luke  the  physician,  at  a  sign  from  Paul, 
With  Aristarchus,  one  on  either  side, 
Supported  Shimei,  tottering  as  he  went 
(Too  weak  to  wish  or  will  or  this  or  that, 
Or  otherwise  behave  than  just  submit), 
To  where  with  feat  celerity  meanwhile 
The  women,  of  one  mind,  Rachel  and  Ruth 
And  fair  Eunice,  in  a  sheltered  place 
Had  spread,  of  rug  and  pillow  thither  brought, 


3 1 8  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XL 

A  sudden  couch  whereon  a  man  might  rest. 

Stephen,  from  out  the  store  of  frugal  cheer 

By  his  forecasting  mother's  care  purveyed  - 

Provision  for  the  needs  that  might  attend 

The  chances  of  sea-faring  —  brought  and  broached 

A  flagon  of  sweet  wine.     This,  to  the  lips 

Of  Shimei  in  a  slender  goblet  pressed, 

Cheered  him  his  heart  and  made  him  seem  to  live. 

All  was  in  silence  done,  and  then,  withdrawn 

A  little  from  about  the  man  supine, 

That  company  of  ministrants,  one  will  — 

Among  them  Mary  Magdalene  too, 

Pathetic,  with  her  deep-experienced  eyes- 

Kept  quiet  watch  and  wished  that  he  might  sleep. 

And  Shimei  slept;  a  deep  dissolving  sleep  — 
Unjointed  all  his  members  in  remiss 
Solution  of  the  consciousness  of  life. 
A  long  deep  sleep  ;  a  dreamless  sleep  at  first, 
Then,  as  the  hours  wore  on  and  still  he  slept, 
Delicious  reminiscences  in  dream 
(Unconscious  hoarded  treasure  of  the  bra;n.) 
Were  loosed  within  him  of  a  dewy  dawn 
Forgotten,  and  a  time  when  he  was  young. 


Book  XI.  THE  LAST  OF  SHIMEI.  319 

He  had  found  the  fountain  in  that  land  of  dream, 

And  drunk  his  fill  from  it  with  sweet  delight, 

Famed  for  its  virtue  to  renew  in  youth. 

The  old  man  was  a  boy  again,  at  home, 

A  Hebrew  home  though  on  an  alien  shore. 

Perhaps  some  soft  insinuation  crept 

Into  his  sleep  from  that  last  waking  sense 

Of  his,  the  sense,  to  him  unwonted  long  — 

A  lonely  man,  of  wife,  of  child,  bereft, 

Who  never  sister's  gentleness  had  known  - 

Of  touch  from  woman's  hand ;  however  it  was, 

Shimei  a  vision  of  his  mother  had. 

A  son,  her  only,  by  his  mother's  knee, 

That  mother's  blossoming    hope,   her  joy,   her 

pride, 

He  felt  the  benediction  of  a  hand, 
Her  hand,  laid  like  a  softness  on  his  brow; 
And  Shimei's  lips,  no  longer  thin  and  cold, 
But  warm  now,  and  with  flush  of  lifeblood  full, 
Moved  in  responsive  welcome  of  a  kiss, 
Her  kiss,  and  holy,  like  a  touch  of  chrism. 
How  fair  the  vision  was  that  then  he  saw  ! 
How  sweet  the   tones  were  that  once  more  he 

heard ! 


320  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  Xt. 

Such  sound,  such  sight,  were  better  than  sweet 

sleep ; 

And  the  fond  sleeper  fain  would  wake,  to  dream 
So  good  a  dream  awake,  and  to  the  full 
Taste  it,  with  senses  and  with  soul  nowise 
Bound  from  the  right  fruition  of  their  feast. 

So,  as  of  his  own  motion,  Shimei  woke- 
And  instantly  was  sorry  for  the  change. 
His  eyes  he  dared  not  open  to  the  day, 
Holding  them  shut  to  hold  himself  asleep. 
Alas,  in  vain  !    Too  late !     Full  well  he  knew 
Now  what  he  was,  and  where,  and  that  in  truth 
His  happy  boyhood  had  come  back  in  dream. 
Yet  lay  he  lapped  in  luxury  of  pain 
And  pathos,  and  sweet  pity  of  himself, 
And  longings  toward  a  past  beyond  recall, 
With  something  also  of  a  good  remorse 
That  he  was  such  as  then  he  felt  he  was, 
Poor  broken  worldling,  empty  heart,  and  old 
(In  contrast  of  his  visionary  youth !), 
Therewith  perhaps  some  upward-groping  wish 
That  he  were  other.     All-undoing  stress 
It  was,  of  elemental  motions  blind 


Book  XI.  Till'.   LAST  OF  SHIM  EL  i>21 


About  the  bases  of  his  being  bowed 

Like  Samson,  and  his  state  was  overthrown 

Those  aged  eyes  that  had  been  used  to  glint 

Metallic  lusters,  or  of  adamant, 

Softened  beneath  the  lids,  unseen,  and  tears 

Forced  themselves  forth  down  either  temple  falling. 

Instinctively  he  stirre^l,  and  with  his  hands 

(Vainly,  encumbered  with  their  manacles  !) 

He  sought  to  brush  those  trickling  tears  away. 

They  wandered  down  to  mingle  with  his  hair, 

Long  locks,  and  thin,  of  iron  grey,  unkempt, 

Close  clinging  to  the  sunken  temple  walls. 

Rachel  with  Ruth  remarked  the  motions  vain, 

And  gently,  without  word,  moved  to  his  side. 

There  Rachel  with  her  kerchief  wiped  the  tears 

With  strokes  as  of  caress,  so  loving  light  ; 

But  Ruth,  observing  for  a  moment,  turned 

With  token  to  Eunice,  quick  of  heart 

To  understand,  who  hastening  lightly  thence 

A  laver  full  of  water  brought,  wherefrom 

The  mother  washed  the  forehead  and  the  face, 

As  had  that  aged  man  her  father  been, 

Then  dried  them  with  a  towel  clean  and  sweet. 

Not  once  the  while  would  Shimei  lift  the  lids 


322  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XI. 

That  trembled  shutting  over  his  dim  eyes : 
Strange  new  emotion  made  him  shrink  from  seeing— 
Shame,  and  a  tenderness  of  gratitude, 
And  love,  that,  with  wing-footed  Memory, 
Ran  backward  to  his  boyhood  and  there  fell 
With  tears  and  kisses  on  his  mother's  neck  — 
Remembered,  she,  a  woman  —  such  as  these! 

The  squalid  wretchedness  of  his  estate 
Forgotten,  and  its  utter  hopelessness, 
Was  it  not  blessed,  only  thus  to  lie 
Ministered  to  as  if  he  were  beloved 
Of  some  one,  he  who  long  had  no  one  loved  ! 
Melted  like  wax  within  him  was  his  heart, 
And  when  at  length  they  spoke  to  him,  and  said, 
"  Thy  hands  too,  if  we  might  too  wash  thy  hands  !  " 
And  when,  he  neither  yes  nor  no  with  word 
Or  sign  replying,  they,  with  yes  assumed, 
Did  it,  assuaging  with  all  healing  heed 
The  hurts  and  bruises  of  the  chafing  chains, 
Then  the  old  man  with  a  convulsive  wrench 
Turned  his  whole  frame  averse  from  them  to  hide 
The  tears  that  streamed  in  rivers  from  his  eyes. 
"  And  this  they  do  for  love  of  their  Lord  Christ  ! " 


Book  XI.  77//1  LAST  OF  SHIMEL  323 

Such  muffled  words,  sobbed  out  amicl  his  tears 
And  shaken  with  the  throbs  that  shook  his  frame, 
Those  women  seemed  to  hear  from  Shimei's  lips. 
"  Lo,  Jesus,  wilt  thou  master  also  me? 
I  cannot  bear  the  pressure  of  this  love  ! 
Crushed  am  I  under  it  into  the  babe 
Indeed  I  dreamed  just  now  I  was  become  !" 
So  Shimei  to  himself,  in  words  more  clear 
With  the  abating  passion  of  his  sobs, 
Spoke  plaintive  with  the  accents  of  a  child. 

A  start  of  tears  responsive  orbed  the  eyes 
Of  Ruth  and  Rachel  at  such  token  shown 
Of  gracious  change  in  Shimei ;  grateful  tears 
They  were,  and  hopeful,  and  each  tear  a  prayer  — 
How  prevalent,  who  knows?  —  for  Shimei. 
God,  in  His  lachrymary  urn  reserved 
To  long  remembrance,  treasures  up  such  tears! 

Paul,  at  remove  with  Stephen,  beholding  all, 
Felt  a  great  pang  and  passion  of  desire 
To  bear  some  part  and  render  a  testimony 
Of  love  and  of  forgiveness  toward  this  man, 
Yea,  of  sweet  will  to  be  forgiven  and  loved 
By  him  in  turn,  that  Shimei  needs  must  trust. 


324  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XL 

He  thought  of  how  the  Lord,  that  extreme  night 

In  which  He  was  betrayed,  He  knowing  well 

The  Father  had  given  all  things  into  His  hands, 

And  He  was  come  from  God  and  went  to  God, 

Rose  from  the  supper,  disarrayed  Himself  - 

As  if  so  laying  His  majesty  aside 

To  clothe  Himself  in  mightier  majesty 

Of  meekness,  with  the  servant's  towel  girded  !  — 

Then,  pouring  water  in  the  basin,  kneeled, 

Girded  in  fashion  as  a  menial,  kneeled. 

The  Lord  Himself  of  life  and  glory  kneeled, 

Washing  and  wiping  his  disciples'  feet ! 

And  Judas,  Paul  remembered,  was  among  them  ! 

"  This  is  my  time,''  said  he,  "  my  time  at  last ; 

Shimei  will  not  resist  nor  say  me  nay, 

And  I,  with  mine  own  hands,  will  wash  his  feet." 

But  Stephen  said  :  "  Lo,  I  have  hated  him 

More  wickedly  than  any,  I  beseech 

Mine  uncle  let  me  do  this  thing  to  him. 

Shimei  will  know  I  do  it  for  thy  sake, 

And  it  will  be  to  him  as  if  thou  didst  it." 

So,  Paul  allowing  it  for  his  nephew's  sake, 

Glad  to  confirm  him  in  that  gentleness, 

Stephen  a  ewer  of  water  made  haste  to  bring, 


Book  XI.  THJ    LAST  OF  SHIMEL  ->>,- 

o  **  j 

And  there  amid  them  all  admiring  him 
Known  to  have  hated  Shimei  so,  he  stooped, 
With  a  most  beautiful  behavior  stooped  - 
Not  without  qualms  of  lothness  overcome, 
Considering  he  how  swift  those  feet  had  been, 
How  swift  those  aged  feet,  how  long,  had  been, 
To  shed  blood,  and  what  blood  to  shed  how  swift !  - 
And  dutifully  washed  and  wiped  them  clean. 

The  old  man  now  lay  utterly  relapsed, 
Exhausted  his  capacity  to  feel, 
Resistance  therefore,  and  even  reaction,  none, 
A  state  suspended  between  life  and  death  ; 
So  had  the  vehemence  of  his  passion  wrought 
On  Shimei's  weakness  to  disable  him. 
The  women  with  sure  instinct  knew  his  need  ; 
They  lightly  on  him  laid  one  covering  more, 
For  now  the  coolness  of  the  night  was  nigh, 
And  again  wished  for  him  the  gift  of  sleep. 
And  again  Shimei  slept,  to  wake  refreshed 
Then  when  the  moonless  sky  was  bright  with  stars, 
Stars  that  not  more  intently  over  all 
Watched,  than  those  faithful  had  watched  over  him. 
Refection  from  their  hands,  both  heedful  meet 


326  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XL 

And  choicest  possible  to  case  like  theirs, 
Strengthened  the  faster  for  a  night-long  sleep, 
Which  with  the  morning  brought  him  back  himself, 
A  self  with  pity  and  terror  purified, 
But  better  purified  with  thanks  and  love. 

So,  lapt  in  a  delightsome  consciousness, 
Half  haze,  a  kind  of  infant  consciousness, 
Of  being  changed  to  other  than  before, 
Shimei  slid  sweetly  on  in  reverie  — 
No  words,  nay,  thoughts  even  not,  pure  reverie ; 
But  if  that  mist  of  musing  in  his  mind 
Had  into  thoughts,  like  star-dust  into  stars, 
Been  orbed,  their  purport  such  as  this  had  been  : 
'  I  miss  it,  and  I  feel  that  I  should  grope 
Vainly  to  find  in  me  the  power  that  once 
Was  ever  mine  to  be  my  proper  self. 
All  standing-ground  seems  melted  under  me, 
Planted  whereon  I  might  with  hope  resist. 
It  is  all  emptiness,  all  nothingness 
About  me,  I  am  utter  helplessness. 
Yet  somehow  it  is  blessed  helplessness  ! 
Let  Him  do  with  me  as  He  will,  Who  now 
Is  dealing  thus  with  me  through  these  !     O  ye, 


Book  XI.  THE  LAST  OF  SHI  Ml- 1. 


327 


His  ministers,  O,  holy  women,  ye, 

Behold,  I  give  myself  through  you  to  Him  ! 

Ye  have  conquered  me  for  Him  at  last  with  love. 

No  weapons  have  I  to  withstand  such  might. 

Tell  Paul  that  he  and  ye  have  overcome 

For  that  both  he  and  ye  were  overcome 

Yourselves  first  by  the  love  that  made  you  love 

Even  me,  even  me,  even  me,  grown  gray  in  sin, 

Such  sin,  amid  such  light,  against  such  love  ! 

Forgive  ye  me,  forgive,  forgive,  forgive, 

And  pray  ye  all  that  I  may  be  forgiven 

Of  Him  to  Whom  henceforth,  unworthy  I 

To  be  at  all  accepted  to  such  thrall, 

I  give  myself  forever  up  a  slave ! ' 

Thus  Shimei,  in  his  formless  fantasy, 
Which  being  nor  word,  nor  thought,  still  less  was 

will, 

Mused,  like  a  river  lapsing  to  the  sea; 
So  softly  did  an  inner  current  draw 
Him  unresisting  whither  it  desired. 
It  seemed  to  Shimei,  in  that  strong  access 
And  overflow  of  feeling  new  to  him, 
As  if  it  would  be  easy  to  speak  out. 


3 28  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XI. 

Nay,  but  as  if  he  must  at  once  speak  out, 
Aloud,  for  those  to  hear  toward  whom  he  now 
Felt  this  delicious  love  and  longing  ;  yet 
He  never  did  so  speak,  alas,  but  wronged 
Himself,  wronged  them,   refraining;    more,  the 

Spirit 

Of  grace  nigh  quenched  with  silence  !    So  it  fared 
With  Shimei  then,  self-shut  from  needful  speech, 
As  might  it  with  some  tender  plant  denied 
Its  freedom  of  the  sun  and  air,  that  peaks 
And  pines  and  cannot  open  into  flower. 
Perhaps  the  habit  of  his  heart  life-long 
Was  winter  all  too  fast  for  any  spring 
To  solve ;  perhaps  he  could  not,  if  he  would, 
Unbind  its  cold  constriction  from  himself 
For  welcome  and  exchange  of  sweet  good-will 
Such  as  he  felt  rife  round  him  in  the  air, 
Wooing  him,  like  bland  weather,  toward  full  bloom 
In  frank  affections  and  fair  courtesies. 
Sad,  if  indeed  the  faculty  in  him 
Of  finer  feeling  and  the  word  to  fit 
Were  lost  through  long  disuse,  or  by  abuse  ! 

But  it  was  much  in  Shimei  that  thenceforth 


Book  XI.  /'///<;  LAST  OF  .V///.J/A7.  329 

He  never  was  bitter  again  with  cynicism  ; 

The  fountains  of  his  evil  humor  were  dry  ; 

He  never  vented  blast  of  unbelief 

To  blight  the  region  round  him  with  black  death 

To  every  springing  plant  and  opening  flower 

Of  cheerful  faith  in  human  nobleness  ; 

That  mordant  tongue  refrained  itself  from  sneer. 

Yea  —  this  with  travail  of  will  through  enforced 

lips  - 

Shimei,  in  frugal  phrase,  but  phrase  sincere, 
Gave,  of  his  conscience,  rather  than  his  heart, 
Thanks  to  them  all  that  ministered  to  him. 
More :  after  days  of  silence,  passed  in  muse 
And  struggle  in  secret  with  himself,  and  prayer, 
Once,  having  asked  to  speak  with  Paul  apart 
And  easily  won  what  he  desired,  he  said  : 
"  Behold,  O  Saul,  I  think  that  I  have  erred, 
Mistaking  thee,  perhaps  myself  mistaking  — 
Yea,  but  I  know  that  I  mistook  myself, 
And  mistook  God,  both  what  He  was  and  wished; 
Most  wickedly  mistook  Him,  honestly  - 
Honestly  deeming  Him  other  than  He  was, 
Imputing  honestly  what  was  not  His  will- 
Mistaking,  with  no  heed  not  to  mistake  ! 


330 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XI. 


This  was  my  wickedness,  that  lightly  I 

Misdeemed  Him  such  an  one  as  I  myself. 

And  thee  I  wronged  comparing  thee  with  myself, 

And  hated  thee  for  what,  I  now  am  sure, 

Thou  wast  not.     Saul,  I  need  to  be  forgiven!" 

Wherewith  his  heavy  head  the  old  man  bent  low, 

With  his  uplifted  hands  in  manacles 

Seeking  to  hide  his  face  as  if  in  shame  ; 

Not  shame  that  he  had  sinned,  but  that  he  now 

Had  spoken  thus.     Yet  did  that  gesture  naught 

Diminish  from  his  words,  but  only  show 

At  cost  how  great  he  had  wrung  them  from  himself. 

Paul  understood  the  anguish  of  his  mind, 
And  said  to  Shimei :  "  Nay,  my  brother,  nay, 
Forgiven  thou  art,  nor  needst  to  be  forgiven, 
Or  at  least  I  have  nothing  to  forgive  thee ; 
I  long  ago  forgave  thee  all  in  all. 
But  I  myself  would  be  of  thee  forgiven  ! 
I  vexed  thee  once  with  high  words  spoken  in  pride  ; 
I  never  have  forgiven  myself  that  pride. 
Forgive  me  thou  it,  thou,  that  hadst  thy  hate 
Needlessly  blown  to  hotter  flame  thereby. 
Let  us  forgive  each  other  and  love  henceforth, 


Book  XI.  THE  LAST  OF  SHI  MEL  <*  i  { 

o  «j 

As  God,  for  Christ's  sake,  will  us  both  forgive ! " 
As  Paul  these  last  words  spoke,  he  strongly  yearned, 
Even  for  Christ's  sake,  to  throw  himself  in  tears 
On  Shimei's  neck  and  there  weep  out  his  love. 
But  he,  for  Shimei's  sake,  forbore  ;  he  saw 
That  Shimei,  softened  as  he  was,  and  changed, 
Was  not  ripe  for  forgiveness  so  complete. 
So  Paul  forbore,  rejoiced  that  Shimei  spoke 
No  word,  and  signified  with  silence  naught, 
In  blasphemy  of  the  Beloved  Name; 
Name  by  himself  in  hope,  not  without  fear, 
Pronounced  —  like  costliest  pearl  at  venture  flung 
Before  what  under  foot  might  trample  it 
And  round  to  rend  the  largess-giver  turn. 

The  chill  obstruction  never  to  the  end 
Was  altogether  thawed  in  Shimei's  heart 
To  make  him  childlike  placable  and  mild. 
Perhaps  more  time,  and  vernal  influence 
Permitted  longer  to  brood  over  him, 
Had  made  it  different ;  but  the  time  was  short 
For  Shimei  in  that  air  of  Paradise. 

The  voyage  long  had  been  with  froward  winds ; 
At  length  those  winds  blew  into  tempest  wild, 


332 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XI 


With  winter  lightnings  strangely  intermixed, 
God  thundering  marvellously  with  His  voice: 
All  on  that  ship  were  awed,  and  some  appalled. 

Shimei,  hugging  himself  upon  the  deck 
Where  most  were  gathered,  for  to  most  it  seemed 
Better  to  stand  beneath  the  open  sky 
Shelterless,  than,  though  sheltered,  not  to  see 
God  make  himself  thus    terrible  in  storm  - 
Shimei,  who,  not  more  helpless  than  the  rest, 
Felt  a  degree  more  helpless  through  his  chains, 
Listened  intently,  with  some  power  of  calm 
Communicated  to  him,  while,  in  tones 
Depressed  unshaken  into  depths  of  awe, 
Paul,  meek  inheritor  of  the  universe, 
As  conscious  child  to  God  through  Jesus  Christ - 
The  spirit  of  adoption  in  his  heart 
That  moment  crying,  "  Abba  Father  !  "   —spoke 
Of  how  those  dwelling  in  the  secret  place 
Of  the  Most  High,  beneath  the  shadow  abode 
Of  the  Almighty,  safe  from  every  harm. 

Amid  the  booms  of  thunder  bursting  nigh 
The  dreadful  forks  of  lightning  flashed  the  while 
And  fell  all  round  the  ship  into  the  sea, 


Book  XI.  THE  LAST  O /•'  .S7//.J/A7. 


333 


Frequent,  dividing  pathways  blinding  bright 
Between  sheer  walls  of  blackness  built  like  stone, 
So  dense  was  piled  the  darkness  of  the  night  ! 
For  it  was  night,  no  moon,  no  star,  and  cloud 
Hung  drooping  in  festoons  from  all  the  sky 
Wind-swept  along  the  bosom  of  the  deep- 
Sky  only  by  the  lightning  flashes  seen, 
At  intervals,  yet  every  moment  felt, 
Oppressive,  like  a  mighty  incubus. 
The  lightning  flashes  thick  and  thicker  fell, 
Near,  nearer,  deadlier,  as  in  conscious  aim, 
Like  the  fierce  vengeful  flames  from  heaven  that 

once 

Elijah  prophet,  on  Mount  Carmel,  drew 
Down  on  his  altar  trenched  about  with  flood  : 
Those  tongues  of  fire  that  circling  trench  lapped 

dry, 

But  these  divided  tongues  of  lightning  seemed 
Equal  to  lick  the  boundless  ocean  up ! 

The  watchers  huddling  on  the  deck  beheld 
In  silence — for  now  also  Paul  was  dumb  — 
The  imminent  menace  of  the  elements. 
Then  what  might  seem  a  frightful  sign  from  heaven  ! 


334 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XI. 


A  leap  of  lightning  and  a  rending  roar 
Of  thunder  at  one  selfsame  moment  broke, 
Sudden,  and  nigh  at  hand  —  as  if  he,  seen 
Of  John  on  Patmos  isle,  that  angel  dread 
(Who,  setting  his  right  foot  upon  the  sea 
And  his  left  foot  upon  the  land,  so  cried 
With  a  loud  voice)  now  standing  on  this  ship 
Had   once  more  cried  and  loosed  the  thunders 

seven, 

So  manifold  the  noise!  —  and  therewith  swayed 
The  sworcl  of  God  in  a  descending  stroke 
On  some  one  there  select  for  punishment. 
They  looked,  and,  lo,  the  fearful  stroke  had  fallen 
On  Shimei ;  he  lay  lifeless  on  the  deck. 
No  motion,  save  of  falling,  and  no  voice  — 
Appalling  silence  and  appalling  calm  ! 
Close  at  the  foot  of  the  tall  mast  he  fell, 
Against  which  with  his  shoulder  he  had  leaned 
To  stay  him  where  he  stood  and  watched  the  storm, 
The  storm  seemed  broken  with  that  burst  of  rage, 
And  quieted  itself  through  slow  degrees 
Of  sullenness  to  peace.      But  the  tall  mast 
At  top  had  been  enkindled  with  the  touch 
Of  the  fell  lightning,  and  it  burned  a  while 


Book  XI.  7V//-:  /.AST  OF  .S7//.J/AY.  335 

Lifted  amid  the  tempest  and  the  night, 

A  beacon  flaming  from  the  Most  High  God. 

Such  was  the  end  of  Shimei,  unforeshown  ; 
To  this  he  tended  all  those  devious  ways  ! 
Next  morning  mid  a  weather  pacified 
They  shrouded  him  for  burial  in  the  deep. 
11  Until  the  sea  give  up  its  dead  ! "  said  Paul 
Solemnly,  as  the  corse  went  weighted  down. 
Julius  would  not  let  free  his  hands  from  chains; 
"  Culprit  he  was  and  culprit  he  shall  go," 
He  said,  "  to  Hades  by  this  watery  way. 
Incensed  Jupiter  despatched  him  hence, 
And  Neptune  will  convey  him  duly  down 
To  where  their  brother  Pluto  will  behold 
Upon  him  the  Olympian's  thunderbrand, 
And  send  to  Rhadamanthus  to  be  judged  !  " 

But  Paul  said  to  his  company  apart : 
"  Let  us  not  judge  before  the  time ;  the  Day, 
The  Day,  that  shall  declare  it.     Let  us  hope ; 
The  mercy  of  the  Lord  is  measureless: 
It  is,  even  like  His  judgment,  a  great  deep, 
And  it  endures  forever;  as  the  psalm 
Sings  it,  again  and  yet  again,  in  long 


336  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XL 

Antiohony  of  praise  that  cannot  end. 

Think  not,  because  the  promise  is  no  harm 

Shall  light  on  any  one  who  dwells  within 

The  secret  place  of  the  Most  High,  that  thence, 

-Seeing  this  awful-seeming  way  of  death 

Has  found  out  Shimei,  he  perforce  has  proved 

Not  to  have  fixed  his  dwelling  ere  he  died 

Safe  in  the  shadow  of  the  Almighty's  throne. 

The  safety  promised  is  not  for  the  flesh, 

But  for  the  spirit.     The  outward  perishes 

In  many  ways  that  to  the  senses  seem 

Preclusive  quite  of  hope  for  life  to  come. 

But,  so  the  inward  bide  untouched  of  Harm, 

The  true  self  lives  and  is  inviolate. 

That  lightning  did  not  fall  on  Shimei's  soul ; 

No  certain  sign  was  it  of  wrath  divine : 

Nay,  even  perhaps  the  opposite  of  such, 

It  may  have  been  a  fiery  chariot 

With  fiery  horses  hither  sent  from  heaven, 

To  bear  him  up  Elijah-like  to  God. 

Far  be  it  to  say  that  this  indeed  was  so  ; 

Yet  often  last  is  first,  as  first  is  last. 

Ye  saw  how  wrought  upon  our  brother  was 

Of  late  to  be  how  different  from  himself ! 


Book  XI.  THE  LAST  OF  SHIM  El.  337 

* 
I  trust  he  trusted  in  the  atoning  blood. 

I  shall  have  hope  to  see  him  yet  endued  >. 

In  shining  robes  of  Jesus'  righteousness, 
Translucent  shining  robes  wherethrough  the  soul 
Herself  shows  shining  in  essential  white! 
God  grant  it,  and  farewell  to  Shimei !  " 


BOOK    XII. 
PAUL   AND    KRISHNA. 


Felix  and  Drusilla  on  the  one  hand  and  Krishna  on  the 
other  disclose  the  contrasted  feelings  severally  excited  in 
them  by  what  they  had  just  witnessed  in  the  lot  of  Shimei. 
Krishna  seeks  from  his  friend  Sergius  Paulus  explanation  of 
the  relations  that  subsisted  between  those  ministering  Chris 
tians  and  the  sufferer.  He  at  length  requests  and  obtains  an 
interview  with  Paul,  and  the  two  have  a  conversation,  one 
result  of  which  is  that  Krishna  asks  to  hear  a  full  account  of 
the  life  and  character  of  Jesus  Christ.  Paul  proposes  that 
Mary  Magdalene  give  this  account,  but  Krishna  courteously 
declines  to  receive  it  from  the  lips  of  a  woman.  The  ship 
meantime  puts  in  at  The  Fair  Havens,  whence,  after  a  short 
stay  in  that  anchorage,  it  sets  sail,  against  the  advice  of  Paul. 


PAUL  AND  KRISHNA. 

As  one  transported  to  a  different  sphere, 
Some  sinless  planet  fairer  far  than  ours, 
Amid  new  scenes  and  aspects  there  beheld, 
Would  watch  and  wonder  and  not  understand, 
So  had  the  most  of  that  ship's  company, 
Not  understanding,  but  much  wondering,  watched 
What  passed  between  the  wretched  Shimei 
And  those  his  ministers  of  grace  and  love. 

Felix,  discoursing  with  Drusilla,  said 
(For  he,  by  virtue  of  his  being  himself, 
Perforced  divined  accordingly  —  amiss) 
"  Much  painful  cultivation,  for  no  fruit  ! 
Paul,  turn  and  turn  about,  that  time  did  seem 
His  enemy  at  advantage  to  have  had, 
And  prospect  was  that  Shimei,  won  to  him 
With  all  those  unexpected  services 
(Sore  needed,  in  such  sorry  case,  no  doubt !) 
Would,  could  he  first  make  shift  to  clear  himself, 
Right  face  about  at  Rome  and,  far  from  being 


342 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XII. 


An  adversary  witness  against  Paul, 

Swear  him  snow-white  with  turncoat  testimony. 

How  easily  king  Jupiter,  with  that  pass 

Of  playful  lightning,  brought  it  all  to  naught !" 

Said  Felix ;  then,  with  change  abrupt  from  sneer, 

Grim  added  this,  in  sullen  afterthought : 

"  That  lightning  was  a  neat  dispatch  for  him  ! 

I  wish  that  it  had  fallen  on  me  instead." 

"  Ill-omened  from  thy  lips  such  words  as  those," 

Drusilla  answered.     "  And  what  love  to  me 

Speak  they,  thy  wife  and  queen  —  not  with  her  lord 

Joined  in  thine  imprecation  dire  of  doom? 

Perhaps  indeed  we  shall  be  separate 

In  death — with  death,  despite  the  difference, 

But  differently  horrible  to  both  ! 

For  I  have  my  forebodings,  bred  of  thine, 

And  dread  to  be  somehow  hereafter  caught 

In  some  form  of  calamity  unknown 

But  unescapable  and  horrible 

And  final  and  fatal  as  that  Shimei's. 

And  what  if  he,  our  son  (thine  image  — form, 

And  face,  and  character,  and  all)  dear  pledge 

To  me  of  love  that  once  his  father  bore 

His  mother,  happy  she  as  worthy  judged, 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA.  343 

Once!  —  what  if  he,  our  little  Felix  too 
Be  in  that  dread  catastrophe  involved  !  " 

Drusilla  thus  half  feigned  contagious  fears, 
But  half  she  felt  them  ;  for  in  truth  she  now, 
So  long  in  shadow  from  her  husband's  mood, 
Was  under  power  of  gloomy  imaginings. 
Yet,  felt  or  feigned  her  fears,  she  made  them  spells 
This  day  to  conjure  with,  when  to  her  own 
Image  the  little  Felix's  she  joined 
In  desperate  hope  to  spur  her  husband's  spirit 
Out  of  the  slough  of  his  despondency 
And  comfort  him  by  making  him  comfort  her. 
But  Felix  was  not  fiber  fine  enough 
To  feel  even,  less  to  heed,  appeal  wrung  out 
Though  from  sincerest  pain  for  sympathy ; 
And  now  his  own  crass  egoism  coarsely  knew 
How  shallow,  or  how  hollow,  or  how  false, 
This  subtler  egoism  of  his  consort  was. 
Drusilla's  art  defeated  its  own  end  ; 
Felix  more  murkily  lowered,  and  muttered  fierce 
Betwixt  set  teeth  in  husky  tones  and  low  : 
"  Aye,  and  why  not  thou  too  along  with  me  ? 
Count  thyself  meant  —  thyself  not  less  than  me  — 


344 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 


In  what  that  memorable  day  was  said 
At  Caesarea  in  the  judgment  hall  - 
Said,  and  much  more  conveyed  without  being  said  — 
By  that  Jew  Paul,  of  dark  impending  doom. 
If  I  am  wicked,  sure  thou  art  wicked  too  ; 
The  gods  must  hate  us,  if  they  hate,  alike. 
Let  us,  since  hated  jointly,  jointly  hate. 
Perhaps  compact  and  cordial  partnership 
Betwixt  us  in  some  hatred  chosen  well 
Will  be  almost  as  good  as  mutual  love ! " 
Drusilla  to  such  savage  cynicism 
Gave  loth  ear  bitterly,  as  one  well  sure 
It  were  not  wise  in  anything  to  cross 
Her  husband's  brutal  whim,  and  he  went  on  : 
"  There  is  that  milksop  Sergius  Paulus  —  he 
Roman,  forsooth  !    The  Roman  in  his  blood, 
If  ever  Roman  ran  therein  true  red, 
Has  been   washed  white  with   something  else  in 
fused. 

I  much  misdoubt  that  Paul  has  brought  him  round 
To  be  disciple  of  the  Nazarene. 
A  pretty  pair,  a  Roman  and  a  Jew  — 
Like  us,  my  dear  Drusilla!    And  the  Jew, 
In  either  case,  the  chief  one  of  the  pair ! " 


Book  XII.  r.lUL  AND  KRISHNA.  345 

With  such  communings  entertained  those  two, 
Adulterer  and  adulteress,  the  hours ; 
The  passion  that  they  once  had  miscalled  love, 
Yea,  even  that  passion  —  long  in  either  breast 
With  the  disgust  of  sick  satiety 
Palled  —  now  at  length  by  guilt  and  guilty  fears, 
Brood  of  ambition  disappointed,  slain  : 
But  in  the  ashes  of  such  burned-out  love 
Smouldered  the  embers  of  self-fuelled  hate, 
Fell  fire  that  thus  on  Sergius  fixed  its  fangs! 

Meanwhile  that  Indian  Krishna,  deep  in  muse, 
Masked  with  impassable  demeanor  mild 
From  all  about  him,  from  himself  even,  masked 
A  trouble  of  wonder  that  he  could  not  lay. 
He  gazed  with  gentle  furtiveness  at  Paul 
And  strove  to  read  the  riddle  of  the  man. 
Fie  felt  Paul's  spirit  different  from  his  own  ; 
His  own  was  placid  \vith  placidity 
Resembling  death,  or  trance  and  apathy 
That  would  be,  were  it  perfect,  death.      But  Paul, 
Not  placid,  peaceful  rather,  seemed  to  live 
Not  less  but  more  intensely  than  the  rest, 
His  fellow-creatures  round  him  in  the  world; 


346  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

A  life  of  passion  reconciled  with  peace  ! 
'Impossible!     Passion  reconciled  with  peace!' 
Thought  Krishna;  '  I  seek  peace  through  passion 

slain, 

Expecting,  I  the  seeker,  not  to  be 
At  all,  the  moment  I  a  finder  am. 
This  Hebrew  has  the  secret  now  of  peace ; 
Strange  peace,  not  passionless,  but  passionate  !  — 
Extinction  not  of  being,  here  forestalled, 
Like  that  for  which  I  strive  by  ceasing  striving 
(With  fear  lest  after  all  I  miss  the  mark, 
And  only  strive  to  cease,  not  cease  to  strive) 

Nay,  no  nirvana  antedated,  his  — 

v 
That  hope  of  our  lord  Buddha  hard  to  win  — 

But  life  increased  with  life  to  such  a  power 

As  is  the  mighty  river's  grown  too  great 

To  register  in  eddy  or  ripple  even 

Resistance  in  its  channel  overcome. 

Is  life  then,  boundless,  better  than  blank  death?' 

So  Krishna  mused  in  doubt  beholding  Paul, 
Until  at  last  to  Sergius  Paulus  he, 
Breaking  the  seals  of  silence,  spoke  and  said  : 
"  If  to  thy  thinking  meet,  bring  me,  I  pray, 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA.  347 

To  speak  with  Paul,  so  named,  thy  friend  as  seems. 

But  first  tell  me  who  was,  and  what,  that  Jew 

To  such  plight  of  sheer  wretchedness  reduced 

That  to  be  rid  by  lightning  of  his  life 

Seemed  blessing,  whatsoever  might  ensue 

Hereafter  to  him  in  his  next  estate, 

Doubtless  some  sad  metempsychosis  due. 

Was  he  perhaps  a  kinsman  near  of  Paul  ?  " 

"  Nay,  kinsman  none,  save  as  all  Jews  are  kin, 

Descended  from  the  same  forefather  old," 

Said  Sergius.     "  Then  perhaps  of  some  of  those, 

Near  kinsman,"  Krishna  said,  "women  with  men, 

Who  watched  with  that  long  patience  over  him, 

And  won  him  as  from  death  to  life  with  love?" 

"  Nay,  also  not  their  kinsman,"  Sergius  said, 

Pleasing  himself  with  saying  no  more,  to  see 

How  far  the  silence-loving  Indian  drawn 

By  unaccustomed  wonder  still  would  seek. 

"  Some  reverend  father  of  his  people,  then," 

Krishna  adventured  guessing,  "  whom,  oppressed 

With  undeserved  calamity,  they  yet 

Honored  themselves  with  honoring  to  the  end  ? " 

"O  nay,  far  otherwise  than  such,  he  was/ 

Said  Sergius,  "vile,  most  vile  by  them  esteemed, 


348  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

And  that  of  rich  desert,  a  man  of  shame 
And  crime  committed  or  fomented  still." 
"  Then  haply — -not  of  purpose,  but  by  chance  " 
Said  Krishna,  groping  deeper  in  his  dark, 
"  That  vile  man  yet,  if  even  by  wickedness, 
Had  wrought  some  service  to  these  kindly  folk 
Which  they  would  not  without  requital  pass?" 
"  Still   from   the  mark,"   said   Sergius,  "thy  sur 
mise. 

That  evil  man  no  end  of  evil  deed 
Instead  had  plotted  and  led  on  in  guile 
Against  these  gentle  people  to  their  woe. 
Last,  and  but  late,  during  this  selfsame  voyage 
Of  theirs  from  Syria  to  Rome,  on  board 
That  other  vessel  whence  they  came  to  us, 
He  sought,  with  midnight  bribe  and  treachery, 
To  compass  violent  death  for  Paul,  a  man, 
As  thou  hast  seen,  beyond  belief  beloved, 
And  for  good  cause,  of  all.     That  failing,  he 
With  perjury  and  well-supported  fraud 
Of  adamantine  front  and  impudence, 
Charged  upon  Paul  attempt  to  murder  him" 

So  Sergius  Paulus,  with  some  generous  heat, 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA.  349 

And  horror  of  the  heinous  things  he  told. 
He  said  no  more  and  Krishna  naught  replied. 

After  much  vexing  controversy  vain 
With  winds  that  varying  ever  blew  adverse, 
They  had  made  the  roadstead  of  The  Havens  Fair. 
Here  they  dropped  anchor,  glad  of  peace  and  rest 
And  leisure  to  consider  of  their  way, 
Whether  they  still  would  forward  stem  despite 
The  threats  of  winter,  or  there  wait  for  spring. 

Krishna  fell  silent  when  those  things  he  heard 
From  Sergius  Paulus  ;  silent  Krishna  fell, 
But  in  his  bosom  shut  deep  musings  up 
Whereof  the  first  he,  in  due  season  brought 
To  speech  with  Paul  while  they  at  anchor  rode, 
Propounded  with  preamble  soft  and  suave 
In  words  like  these  :  "  Much  merit  hast  thou  hope 
Doubtless,  yea,  and  most  justly,  to  have  earned, 
Thou,  and  thy  Hebrew  fellow-voyagers, 
With  all  that  ill-deserved  kindness  shown 
Him,  thy  base  countryman,  whom,  thunderstruck, 
Fate  hurried  lately  hence  to  other  doom. 
A  millstone  burden  bound  about  the  neck 
Is  karma  such  as  his  to  weigh  one  down  — 


350  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

'  Karma,'  we  say  ;  but  otherwise  perhaps 

Thou  speakest ;  merit  or  demerit,  what 

Accrues  to  one  inseparable  from  himself, 

In  part  his  earning,  heritage  in  part, 

The  harvest  reapt  of  virtue  or  of  vice  — 

Aye,  karma  such  as  his  was  weighs  one  down 

In  dying,  to  new  life  more  dire  than  death. 

Hard-won  a  karma  like  thine  own,  but  worth 

The  winning  though  ten  thousand  times  more  hard  ! " 

Paul  felt  the  Indian's  gentleness  and  loved 
Him  with  great  pity  answering  him  :  "  I  know 
Thy  meaning,  and  I  take  the  courtesy, 
While  yet  the  praise  I  cannot,  of  thy  words. 
My  karma  is  not  mine  as  won  by  me 
With  either  easy  sleight  or  hard  assay - 
The  karma  thou  hast  seemed  in  me  to  find : 
That  was  bestowed,  and  is  from  hour  to  hour 
With  ever  fresh  bestowal  still  renewed. 
I  had  a  karma  once  indeed  my  own, 
Much  valued,  wage  it  was  of  labor  sore , 
But  it  grew  hateful  in  my  opened  eyes 
And  I  despised  it  underneath  my  feet 
To  be  as  dross  rejected  and  abjured." 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA. 


35* 


Paul's  sudden  vehemence  in  recital  seemed 
Less  vehemence  from  recalling  of  long-past 
Strong  spurning,  than  that  spurning  now  renewed. 
Unmoved  the  Indian  save  to  mild  surprise 
Made  answer  :  "  Our  lord  Buddha  teaches  us 
Our  karma  is  inalienably  ours, 
The  fatal  fruit  of  what  we  do  and  are, 
No  more  to  be  divided  from  ourselves 
Than  shadow  from  its  substance  in  the  sun. 
But,  nay,  that  figure  fails ;  our  karma  is 
Substantial  and  enduring  more  than  we. 
We  die,  our  karma  lives  ;   it  shuffles  off 
Us  as  outworn,  and  takes  unto  itself 
Forever  other  forms  to  fit  its  needs, 
Until  the  cycle  is  filled  of  change  and  change, 
And  misery  and  existence  cease  together. 
Such  karma  is,  the  one  substantial  thing, 
And  such  are  we,  mere  shadows  of  a  day. 
Pray  then  explain  to  me  how  thou  dost  say 
Thou  ridst  thee  of  a  karma  once  thine  own  ; 
And  how  moreover  thou  canst  add  and  say 
Thou  tookst  another  karma,  given,  not  won. 
I  fain  would  understand  the  doctrine  thine." 


352  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

With  something"  of  a  sweet  despondency 
Pathetically  tingeing  his  good  will, 
Paul  on  the  gentle  Indian  gazed  and  said  : 
"  O  brother,  with  all  wish  to  meet  thee  fair, 
Yet  know  I  that  I  cannot  answer  thee, 
Save  as  in  parable  and  paradox 
Beyond  thine  understanding,  yea,  and  mine." 

Paul  so  replied  because  his  mind  indeed 
Sank  in  a  sense  sincere  of  impotence  ; 
But  partly  too  because  he  felt  full  well 
How  all-accomplished  in  the  skill  of  thought, 
How  subtle,  and  how  deep,  the  Indian  was, 
As  how  by  nature  and  by  habit  fond 
Of  allegory  and  of  mystery. 
He  deemed  that  he  should  best  his  end  attain 
Of  feeding  this  inquiring  spirit  fine 
With  the  chief  truth,  by  frankly  staggering  himy 
As  the  Lord  staggered  Nicodemus  once, 
With  that  which  in  his  doctrine  was  the  highest 
And  hardest  to  receive  or  understand, 
Set  forth  in  terms  of  shadow  to  perplex, 
But  also  tempt  to  further  curious  quest. 
Merging  the  Indian's  idiom  in  his  own 


353 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA. 

And  lading  it  with  unwonted  sense,  Paul  said: 
"That  karma,  erst  so  valued,  I  escaped 
How?  by  becoming  other  than  I  was. 
The  old  man  died  and  a  new  man  was  born, 
With  a  new  karma  given  him,  of  pure  grace, 
A  seamless  robe  of  snow-white  righteousness, 
Enduement  from  the  hand  of  One  that  died 
To  earn  the  right  of  so  bestowing  it. 
Raiment  of  filthy  rags  with  pride  I  had  worn 
Before,  not  knowing,  painful  patchwork  pieced 
Upon  me  of  such  works  of  righteousness 
Mine  own  as  cost  me  dear  indeed,  yet  worth 
Nothing  to  hide  my  nakedness  and  shame. 
Now  I  am  clad  in  Jesus'  righteousness, 
A  shining  vesture,  with  nor  seam  nor  stain." 


"  Proud  words,  albeit  not  proudly  spoken,  thine," 
Said  Krishna;  "spotlessly  enrobed  art  thou 
In  righteousness  and  karma  without  flaw, 
Then  thou  hast  reached  the  issue  of  The  Way 
And  art  already  for  nirvana  ripe  : 
Gautama  could  not  make  a  bolder  claim 
When,  conquering,  "he  attained  the  Buddhaship. 
Yet  meekly  thou  madest  mention  of  pure  grace, 


354  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

And  merit  all  another's,  not  thine  own. 

A  paradox  indeed,  perplexing  me, 

Such  boldness  mixed  with  such  humility." 

"Yea,"  Paul  said,  "the  humility  it  is 

That  makes  the  boldness   thou    hast    found    in 

me  ; 

It  were  defect  of  right  humility 
Not  boldly  to  obey  when  Christ  bids  do. 
Christ  bids  me  take  His  perfect  righteousness  ; 
I  can  be  humble  but  by  taking  it  — 
Boldly  ?  yea,  or  as  if  boldly,  for  here 
Humility  and  boldness  twain  are  one.' 

"To  thee  thy  teacher  Christ,"  said  Krishna, 

"seems 

Something  the  same  as  Buddha  is  to  me : 
Yet  other,  more ;  not  teacher  simply,  Christ 
To  thee,  and  master,  setter  forth  of  wise 
Instructions  and  commands  obeying  which 
Thou  also  now,  as  he  once  saved  himself, 
Mayst  thyself  save  through  merit  hardly  earned. 
Thy  Christ  is  will,  not  less  than  wisdom  ;  power 
And  help,  as  well  as  guidance  in  the  way. 
Sovereign  creator  and  imparter,  he 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA.  355 

Saves  thee,  thou   trustcst,   through   new  life  be 
stowed, 

Which  makes  thee  other  than  thou  wast  before, 
And  therefore  frees  thee  from  the  fatal  yoke 
And  bondage  of  the  karma  thou  hadst  won 
With  labor  when  thou  wast  the  former  man  : 
The  words  are  easy,  but  the  sense  is  hard." 

"  Hard  ?  "   Paul  said  ;  "  nay,  outright  impossible 
To  any  soul  of  man  that  still  abides 
His  old  first  natural  self  unchanged  to  new. 
Submit  thyself  unto  the  righteousness 
Of  God,  and  thou  the  mystery  shalt  know 
With  knowledge  deeper  than  the  mind's  most  deep 
Divinings  of  the  things  she  cannot  speak." 

"  To  fate,  the  universe,  and  necessity," 
Said  Krishna,  "  I  submit,  because  I  must. 
But  to  submit  because  I  will,  to  any  thing, 
Much  more  to  any  one,  that  is,  give  up 
My  will,  which  is  my  self,  my  very  self, 
To  be  another's  and  no  longer  mine, 
Consent  to  be  another  person  quite 
Than  I  have  been,  and  am,  and  wish  to  be  — 
This  thou  proposes!  to  me,  if  I  take 


356  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

Rightly  thy  words  to  mean  thou  thus  hast  done, 
Becoming  what  thou  art  by  vital  change 
From  something  different  that  thou  wast  before. 
I  frankly  tell  thee  I  have  not  the  power 
So  to  commute  myself,  had  I  the  will." 

"  '  I  cannot'  is  '  I  will  not'  here,"  said  Paul  ; 
"  No  power  is  needful  of  thine  own  save  will : 
Will,  and  thou  canst  ;  God  then  in  thee  is  power. 
Consider,  it  is  only  to  submit." 
"  I  feel  my  inmost  will  in  me  disdain," 
Said  Krishna,  "this  effacement  of  myself." 
"Yea,  yea,"  said  Paul,  "it  is  the  carnal  mind 
In  thee,  the  primal  unregenerate  self 
Ever  in  all  at  enmity  with  God, 
Which  is  not  subject  to  the  law  of  God, 
Neither  indeed  can  be ;  to  be,  were  death 
To  that  old  self  which  must  resist,  to  live  : 
The  carnal  mind  is  enmity  to  Gocl ; 
When  enmity  to  God  ceases  in  one, 
Then  ceases  in  that  one  the  carnal  mind, 
The  original  man  with  his  self-righteousness 
His  karma,  if  thou  please,  his  good,  his  ill. 
He  is  no  more,  and  all  that  appertains 


Book  XII.  /'  /  UL  AND  KRISHNA.  357 

To  him  is  dead  and  buried  out  of  sight 
Forever  ;  but  there  lives  a  second  self 
By  resurrection  from  that  sepulcher- 
By  fresh  creation  rather  from  the  dead- 
A  new  regenerate  man  at  one  with  God, 
For  to  the  law  of  God  agreed  in  will, 
Replaced  the  carnal  with  the  spiritual  mind, 
Warfare  and  death  exchanged  for  life  and  peace." 

Into  Paul's  voice,  he  ceasing  with  those  words, 
There  slid  a  cadence  as  of  reverie : 
He  seemed  to  muse  so  deeply  what  he  said 
That  he  less  said  than  felt  it  ;    'life'  and  'peace,' 
So  spoken,  no  mere  sounds  upon  the  tongue, 
Were  audible  pulses  of  the  living  heart. 
Invasion  thence  of  power  seized  Krishna's  soul, 
And,  '  Life  and  peace  ! '  he  murmured,  '  Life  and 

peace  ! ' 

But  said  aloud  :  "  Strange  union,  peace  with  life  ! 
We  look  for  peace  only  with  death,  last  death, 
That  death  indeed  beyond  which  nothing  is, 
No  further  transmigration  of  the  soul, 
No  soul,  no  karma,  all  pure  passionless 
Non-being;  not  a  state,  since  state  implies 


358  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XII. 

Some  subject  of  a  state,  and  here  is  none, 

To  do  or  suffer  or  at  all  to  be  : 

Absolute  zero,  such  the  Buddhist's  peace." 

"  '  I  am  come,'  Jesus  said,"  so  Paul  replied, 
"  'That  ye  might  have  life,  more  abundant  life.' 
Life,  life,  deep  stream  and  full,  a  river  of  Gocl, 
Pours  endless,  boundless,  from  the  heart  of  Christ ; 
'  Ho,  every  one  that  thirsteth,  drink,'  said  He, 
'  Lo,  drink  and  live  with  mine  eternal  life.'' 

"  I  fear  fallacious  promises  of  good," 
Sighed  Krishna  ;   "life  were  good  indeed  with  peace. 
But  me,  I  hope  not  any  good  save  flight, 
Save  flight  and  refuge  inaccessible 
From  persecuting  and  pursuing  ill. 
Being  is  misery  ;   I  would  cease  to  be  ; 
No  hope  have  I,  and  no  desire,  but  that. 
Hope  is  for  children  ;   I  am  not  a  child 
To  chase  the  ends  of  rainbows,  seeking  gold  : 
There  is  no  hope  that  does  not  make  ashamed. 
I  dare  not  hope,  eagerly,  even  for  death, 
Lest  that  likewise  elude  my  clutch  at  last. 
Despair  no  less  I  shun  ;  despair  is  naught 
But  hope  turned  bitter  and  sour,  postponed  too  long. 


Book  XII.  PAUL  ANJ)  KRISHNA.  359 

I  only  seek  to  cease  from  hope,  from  fear, 
From  every  passion  that  can  shake  my  calm. 
Calm  is  my  good,  and  perfect  calm  is  death, 
Therefore  I  wait  for  death  with  death-like  calm. 
Thou  wouldst  disturb  the  calm  with  hope  of  life, 
Fair,  but  fallacious;   let  me  alone  to  die." 

With  soft  pathetic  deprecation  so 
Krishna,  in  form  of  words,  half  faltering,  begged 
From  Paul  no  more,  yet  added:  "I  would  hear 
Something  of  what  he  was,  thy  master;  what 
He  did  as  well  as  taught ;  and  whence  he  came, 
And  when,  and  where,  and  how ;  and  how  he  lived 
And  died,  having  achieved  his  Buddhaship." 

-For  me,"  Paul  said,  "  I  never  truly  knew 
My  Master  while  He  lived  among  us  here, 
Almighty  God  incarnate  in  the  form 
Of  servant  — glory  and  blessing  to  His  name! 
Though  after  lie  in  triumph  from  the  dead 
Rose,  and  ascended  far  above  all  height 
Into  the  heaven  of  heavens  to  be  with  Gocl- 
Whcnce  he  had  stooped  the  dreadful  distance  down 
To  His  humiliation  among  men- 
Then  lie  revealed  Himself  in  power  to  me, 


360  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XII. 

And  I  beheld  His  face  and  heard  His  voice, 
And  knew  Him  for  co-equal  Son  of  God. 
But  thou,  besides  that  in  this  power  and  glory 
No  man  may  see  Him  save  He  show  Himself, 
Wouldst  wish  a  picture  of  the  life  He  lived, 
The  manner  of  man  He  was,  while  still  on  earth, 
The  death  He  died,  and  how  He  died  His  death. 
There  is  one  here  among  us  well  can  draw 
The  living  picture  thou  wouldst  look  upon, 
For  she  was  with  Him  when  He  walked  the  ways 
Of  Galilee  and  Jewry  doing  good  ; 
She  saw  Him  suffer  when  by  wicked  hands 
His  blindfold  yet  more  wicked  countrymen  — 
Alas,  among  them  I  !  —  put  Him  to  death. 
With  early  morning  at  His  sepulcher, 
His  emptied  sepulcher,  she  weeping  stood 
And  saw  —  but  what  she  saw  and  all  her  tale 
Of  Jesus  as  she  knew  and  loved  Him  here, 
Is  Mary  Magdalene's  right  herself 
With  her  own  lips  and  is  her  joy,  to  tell." 

"  Lord  Buddha  would  not  let  a  woman  teach," 
Indulging  so  much  of  recoil  concealed 
As  might  consist  with  utmost  courtesy 


Book  XII.  PAUL  AND  KRISHNA.  361 

Said  Krishna;  but,  with  wise  avoidance,  Paul : 
"  And  Mary  Magdalene  will  not  teach, 
But  only  in  simplicity  with  truth 
Bear  testimony  of  eye-witness  how 
Immanuel  Jesus  lived  His  life  on  earth." 

While  thus  they  talked  a  movement  on  the  deck, 
Words  of  command  and  bustle  to  obey, 
Betokened  that  the  purpose  was  to  leave 
The  sheltered  anchorage  of  The  Havens  Fair 
And  tempt  the  dangers  of  the  winter  deep. 
Paul  saw  it  and  suddenly  broke  off  discourse 
With  Krishna,  saying  to  him  :  "  They  err  in  this  ; 
Surely  we  here  should  winter.      Let  me  speak 
A  moment  with  the  master  of  the  ship." 

Krishna  with  such  surprise  as  disapproved 
Dimly  in  his  immobile  features  shown, 
Watched  while  this  intermeddling  strange  went  on; 
Strange  intermeddling  ventured,  strangely  borne, 
Captive  to  captor  bringing  advice  unsought ; 
For  IJaul  to  the  centurion  also  turned 
When  now  the  master  and  the  owner  both 
Agreed  against  him  ;  but  that  Roman  chose 
Likewise  his  part  with  them  to  sail  away. 


A  violent  storm  occurs  and  the  vessel  is  wrecked.  Krishna, 
having  carefully  noted  the  part  that  Paul  takes  in  the  rescue 
of  the  lives  of  all  on  board,  and  having  noted  besides  the 
miracles  performed  by  Paul  on  the  island  of  Malta  where 
they  come  safe  to  shore,  brings  himself  to  signify  now  his 
willingness  to  hear  from  Mary  Magdalene  her  story  of  Jesus 
Christ.  A  company  assemble,  including,  with  the  Chris 
tians,  Julius  as  well  as  Krishna,  and  Mary  begins  her  narra 
tive.  This  after  a  time  is  interrupted  by  a  peremptory 
summons  from  Felix  to  Paul,  to  which  Paul  responds  in 
person. 


SHIPWRECK. 

The  south  wind  softly  blew  a  favoring  breeze 
As  forth  they  put  and  stood  for  Italy : 
But  that  fair  mother  in  her  bosom  bore 
Offspring  of  storm  that  hastened  to  the  birth. 
For  soon  the  fondling  weather  changed  to  fierce, 
And,  blustering  from  the  north,  Euraquilo 
Beat  down  with  all  his  wings  upon  the  sea, 
Which  under  that  rough  brooding  writhed  in  foam 
To  whirlpool  ready  to  engulf  the  ship. 
No  momentary  tempest  swift  as  wild  ; 
But  blast  of  winter  wanting  never  breath 
Poured  from  all  quarters  of  the  sky  at  once 
And  caught  the  vessel  like  a  plaything  up 
Hurling  it  hither  and  thither  athwart  the  deep. 
The  sails  were  rent  and  shredded  from  the  masts  ; 
The  boat,  to  be  the  hope  forlorn  of  life, 
Was  hardly  come  by,  so  the  hungry  wave 
Desired  it  as  a  morsel  to  its  maw. 
The  ship  through  all  her  timbers  groaned  and 

shrieked 
And  all  her  joints  seemed  melting  with  the  fray 


A  violent  storm  occurs  and  the  vessel  is  wrecked.  Krishna, 
having  carefully  noted  the  part  that  Paul  takes  in  the  rescue 
of  the  lives  of  all  on  board,  and  having  noted  besides  the 
miracles  performed  by  Paul  on  the  island  of  Malta  where 
they  come  safe  to  shore,  brings  himself  to  signify  now  his 
willingness  to  hear  from  Mary  Magdalene  her  story  of  Jesus 
Christ.  A  company  assemble,  including,  with  the  Chris 
tians,  Julius  as  well  as  Krishna,  and  Mary  begins  her  narra 
tive.  This  after  a  time  is  interrupted  by  a  peremptory 
summons  from  Felix  to  Paul,  to  which  Paul  responds  in 
person. 


SHIPWRECK. 

The  south  wind  softly  blew  a  favoring  breeze 
As  forth  they  put  and  stood  for  Italy : 
But  that  fair  mother  in  her  bosom  bore 
Offspring  of  storm  that  hastened  to  the  birth. 
For  soon  the  fondling  weather  changed  to  fierce, 
And,  blustering  from  the  north,  Euraquilo 
Beat  down  with  all  his  wings  upon  the  sea, 
Which  under  that  rough  brooding  writhed  in  foam 
To  whirlpool  ready  to  engulf  the  ship. 
No  momentary  tempest  swift  as  wild  ; 
But  blast  of  winter  wanting  never  breath 
Poured  from  all  quarters  of  the  sky  at  once 
And  caught  the  vessel  like  a  plaything  up 
Hurling  it  hither  and  thither  athwart  the  deep. 
The  sails  were  rent  and  shredded  from  the  masts  ; 
The  boat,  to  be  the  hope  forlorn  of  life, 
Was  hardly  come  by,  so  the  hungry  wave 
Desired  it  as  a  morsel  to  its  maw. 
The  ship  through  all   her  timbers  groaned  and 

shrieked 
And  all  her  joints  seemed  melting  with  the  fray 


366  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

And  fracture  of  the  jostling"  elements. 
At  their  wits'  end,  those  mariners  distraught, 
Feeling  the  deck  dissolve  beneath  their  feet, 
With  undergirding  helped  the  anguished  ship  ; 
While,  worse  than  waters  waiting  to  devour, 

A  sea  of  quicksand  seethed,  they  knew,- full  nigh. 

* 

So  the  night  fell  but  brought  no  stay  to  storm  ; 
Fresh  fury  rather  every  darkening  hour. 

The  dismal  daylight  dawned,  and  wind  and  wave, 
Gnashing  white  teeth  of  foam,  all  round  the  ship 
Howled  like  wild  beasts  defeated  of  their  prey. 
Then,  as  to  bait  those  monster  ravening  mouths, 
They  portion  of  the  lading  overboard 
Fling,  in  the  hope  that  lightened  so  the  bark 
Springing  more  buoyant  may  outride  the  storm. 

But  the  storm  thickened  as  the  third  day  dawned, 
And  not  the  crew  alone  but  all  on  board 
Worked  the  ship's  gear  in  the  increasing  gale. 
They  thus  bestead,  the  heavens  above  them  lowered 
Day  after  day  that  neither  sun  nor  stars 
One  instant  flickered  in  the  firmament; 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  367 

The  blotted  blackness  made  one  dreadful  night 
Of  day  and  night  confounded  in  the  gloom. 
Hope  now  went  out,  last  light  to  leave  the  sky, 
Outburning  sun  and  moon  and  star  all  quenched 
Before  her  in  that  drowning  drench  of  dark  — 
Hope  too  went  out,  touched  by  the  hand  of  death. 

Then  Paul  stood  forth,  himself  with  fasting  faint, 
Amid  those  famished  faint  despairing  souls 
And  upward  reaching  high  his  hand  to  heaven, 
There  kindled  once  again  the  star  of  hope. 
Chiding  them  fairly  that  they  did  not  heed 
His  warning  word  betimes  to  shun  that  harm, 
He  gave  them  cheer  that  they  should  yet  escape, 
All  should  escape  with  life  from  this  assay ; 
Only  the  ship  must  suffer  wreck  and  loss. 
"  The  angel  of  the  Lord,  that  Lord,"  said  Paul, 
"Whose  with  all  joy  I  am  and  whom  I  serve, 
As  ye  have  seen,  with  worship  night  and  day, 
Stood  by  me  in  the  night  and  said  to  me  : 
'  Fear  thou  not,  Paul  ;  thou  art  to  stand  in  Rome 
Before  the  bar  of  Caesar ;  lo,  thy  God 
Hath  to  thee  given  all  those  that  sail  with  thee.' 
Be  of  good  cheer  then,  ye  ;  for  I  believe 


368  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

God  that  He  will  perform  His  word  to  me. 
Upon  an  island  look  to  find  us  cast." 

Full  fourteen  days  the  ship  went  staggering  on 
A  helpless  hulk  amid  the  Adrian  sea, 
When  now  the  sailors,  deeming  that  they  neared 
Some  coast-line,  sounded  in  the  midnight  dark ; 
Then  farther  drifting  sounded  once  again 
To  find  themselves  indeed  upon  the  shoals. 
Here,  fearing  to  be  driven  upon  rocks, 
They  anchored,  and  so  waiting  wished  for  day. 

And  now  a  dastard  thing  those  sailors  schemed : 
Under  pretext  to  cast  one  anchor  more, 
As  to  that  purpose  they  let  down  the  boat, 
Minded  therein  to  steal  their  own  escape 
Leaving  the  rest  to  perish  with  the  ship. 
But  Paul  perceived  their  fraud  and  subtlety 
And  said  to  Julius  with  his  soldiery ; 
"  Let  those  men  go  and  ye  cannot  be  saved  ;" 
Whereon  the  soldiers  cut  the  lowering  ropes, 
Sending  the  boat  to  surf  and  reef  a  prey. 

As  broke  the  fourteenth  morning  yet  forlorn, 
Paul,  unconfessed  the  captain  of  the  ship 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  369 

And  master  of  his  fellow  voyagers, 

In  the  dim  twilight  of  the  struggling  dawn 

Stood  on  the  slippery  deck  amidst  them  all 

And  stoutly  cheered  them  to  take  heart  of  hope 

Break  their  long  fast  and  brace  themselves  with  food. 

"  For  not  a  hair  shall  fall  from  off  the  head 

Of  any  one  of  you,"  said  he,  and  took 

Therewith  himself,  in  act  more  eloquent 

Than  spoken  word,  bread  and  gave  thanks  to  God 

In  presence  of  them  all  ;  then  breaking  it 

Forthwith  began  to  eat ;  this  heartened  them 

That  they  likewise  strengthened  themselves  with 

meat. 

Thus  comforted,  once  more  the  laboring  ship 
They  lighten  of  her  lading  and  the  wheat 
Sow  in  the  barren  brine. 

The  land  descried 

They  knew  not,  but  there  was  no  land  unknown 
That  were  not  better  than  that  wallowing  sea. 
So,  cutting  loose  their  anchors,  they  made  sail 
And  drove  the  vessel  aground  upon  a  beach, 
Where  the  keel  plunged  into  the  yielding  sand 
Which  closing  heavy  upon  it  held  her  fast ; 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIII. 

But  the  free  stern  rocked  on  the  billowing  surge 
That  soon  atwain  must  break  her  in  the  midst. 

Hardness  of  habit  and  of  discipline 
Partly,  and  partly  a  self-regarding  fear 
Lest  they  be  held  to  answer  with  their  lives, 
If  even  amid  the  mortal  panic  pangs 
Of  shipwreck  they  should  let  their  charge  escape, 
Made  now  those  Roman  soldiers,  in  the  jaws 
Themselves  yet  of  the  common  peril  hung, 
Ready  to  put  their  prisoners  to  the  sword  ; 
But  Julius  stayed  them  for  the  sake  of  Paul. 
"  You  that  can  swim,"  he  shouted,  "  overboard  !  " 
Some  thus,  and  some  on  spars  buoyed  up,  and  some 
On  other  floatage  of  the  breaking  wreck, 
They  all  got  safe  to  shore,  not  one  soul  lost. 

The  master  of  the  rescue  still  was  Paul ; 
Calm,  but  alert,  completely  self-possessed  — 
(Possessor  of  himself,  yet  not  himself 
Considering,  save  to  sacrifice  himself 
Freely  at  need)  ;  his  courage  and  his  hope 
Inspiring  hope  and  courage  ;  self-command 
In  him  aweing  the  rest  to  self-command  ; 
His  instinct  instant  and  infallible 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  371 

Amid  the  terror  and  the  turbulence,  - 

Winds  howling  and  sea  heaving  and  strait  room 

For  nigh  three  hundred  souls  in  face  of  death  !  — 

Each  moment  seeing  ere  the  moment  passed 

What  the  need  was  and  what  the  measure  meet 

To  match  it  —  that  serene  old  man  and  high 

Was  as  an  angel  there  descended  who 

Could  had  he  chosen  at  once  have  stayed  the 

storm, 
But  rather  chose  to  wield  it  as  he  would. 

The  captain  of  the  vessel  and  the  man 
Whose  was  the  vessel,  these,  with  Julius  too, 
Roman  centurion  as  he  was  in  charge, 
Grouped  themselves  close  by  Paul  and  heard  his 

word 

And  had  it  heeded  without  stay  by  all. 
"  I  shall  be  last  to  leave  the  ship,"  Paul  cried, 
"  Do  therefore  ye  the  things  that  I  advise. 
The  women  first.      Lady  Drusilla,  thou 
Commit  thyself  to  four  picked  sailors,  these" 
The  master  of  the  vessel  chose  them  out  — 
"Two  soldiers  with  them  —  Julius,  by  thy  leave 
And  of  thy  choice  —  and  on  this  ample  spar 


372 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 


Supported  thou  shalt  safely  come  to  land ; 

And,  Madam,  thy  little  son  shall  go  with  thee." 

They  lashed  them  to  the  timber,  lowered  it  fair 

(With  Felix  desperately  hugging  it, 

The  image  of  a  sordid  craven  fear)  ; 

The  men  detailed  leapt  overboard  to  it, 

And  steering  it  as  they  could  with  feet  and  hands 

Let  the  sea  wave  on  wave  wash  it  ashore  : 

She  was  indignant  to  be  rescued  so, 

But  by  abrupt  necessity  was  tamed. 

"  Let  me,  I  pray  thee,  save  thy  sister,  Paul," 
Said  Sergius  Paulus,  who,  assuming  yea, 
Forthwith  led  Rachel  —  she  with  such  a  grace 
Of  confidence  in  him  as  made  him  strong 
Following  —  to  where  a  fragment  of  the  deck 
Disjointed  in  the  vessel's  agony 
Lay  loosened,  which  he  clove  and  wrenched  away  ; 
Then  watching  when  the  vessel  listed  right 
And  the  sea  met  it  with  a  slope  of  wave, 
They,  this  beneath  them,  clinging  to  it,  slid 
Down  the  steep  floor  into  the  frothing  brine 
Stephen  was  by  and  helped  them  make  the  launch. 
Sergius,  from  the  side  opposite  to  her  — 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  373 

To  steady  the  light  wreckage  all  he  might 
Lest  wanting  balance  it  should  overturn  - 
Reaching  across,  kept  Rachel's  fingers  clasped 
In  hold  upon  the  wavering  wood,  until, 
What  with  his  oarage  and  the  wash  of  waves, 
They  found  a  melting  foothold  on  the  sand. 

Krishna  stood  wishing  to  be  serviceable, 
And  when  to  Aristarchus,  stout  and  brave, 
Paul  was  commending  Mary,  at  a  look 
From  the  Indian  that  imported  such  desire, 
Leave  was  given  him  to  undertake  for  Ruth. 
Each  of  the  two  life-savers  rent  a  door 
From  off  its  hinges  and  thereon  secured 
The  women  awed  in  that  extreme  assay 
Yet  girded  to  a  constancy  of  calm, 
And,  Stephen  helping,  lowered  them  to  the  deep. 
Krishna  was  let  down  after  by  a  rope, 
No  swimmer  he,  but  Ruth  too  held  the  rope 
And  drew  him  to  the  float  whereon  she  tossed. 
Greek  Aristarchus  was  a  swimmer  born 
And  practised,  and  he  plunged  headforemost  down, 
Soon  to  emerge  with  easy  buoyancy 
And  aim  unerring  true  where  Mary  rode. 


374 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 


The  two  then  —  Aristarchus  in  the  lead 
Teaching  the  Indian  how,  and,  with  the  rope 
Flung  to  his  hand  at  his  desire  by  Ruth 
And  by  him  featly  bound  about  his  waist, 
Drawing  the  floatage  forward,  while  his  own 
He  pushed  with  swimming — won  their  way  to 

shore. 

Twice  Aristarchus  was,  for  stress  of  wave, 
Fain  to  release  his  hold  upon  his  float, 
So  fierce  the  tug,  and  sudden,  at  his  waist ; 
But  he,  by  swimming  and  by  seamanship 
Consummate  joined  to  strength  well-exercised, 
Strength  by  the  exigence  redoubled  now, 
Both  times  regained  it  and  thenceforward  kept. 
Mary  meanwhile,  forsaken,  faltered  not ; 
She  felt  the  stay  of  other  hands  than  his. 

All  his  advices  and  permissions  Paul 
Put  forth  in  such  continuous  sequence  swift 
That  well-nigh  simultaneous  all  they  seemed  : 
The  vessel  swarmed  with  ordered  movement  mixed, 
And  the  sea  lived  with  strugglers  for  the  shore. 
Of  all  these  only  Simon  had  the  cool 
Cupidity  and  temerity  to  risk 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK. 

Weighting  himself  with  treasure  to  bear  off 
In  rescue  from  the  wreck  ;   he  his  loved  gold, 
Ill-gotten  gains  of  sorcery  and  of  fraud, 
Secretly  carried  with  him  safe  to  land. 


Stephen  did  not  lack  helpers  ;  Julius  bade 
Varenus,  of  the  soldiers,  serve  his  wish  ; 
And  Syrus,  a  young  slave  of  Felix's, 
Sprang  of  his  own  free  motion  joyfully 
To  help  him  pluck  Eunice  out  of  scath  ; 
For  he  had  marked  the  youthful  Hebrew  pair 
With  distant,  upward-looking,  loyal  love 
Instinctive  toward  such  virtue  and  such  grace. 
But,  "  Nay,"  Eunice  said,  "  not  yet  for  me  ; 
See  there  those  trembling  creatures  "    -the  hand 
maids 

Of  dame  Drusilla —  "  rescue  first  for  them!  " 
On  a  good  splinter  of  the  tall  curved  stem- 
The  sign  of    Ceres  at  the  gilded  beak  — 
By  the  rude  violence  of  the  shock  torn  off 
When  the  ship  grounded,  they  tied  the  two  slave 

girls  ; 

But  the  shipmaster  fair  Eunice's  act 
Of  self-postponing  nobleness  admired. 


375 


376  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

And  bade  two  trusty  seamen  help  let  down 
That  beam  life-laden  soft  into  the  sea 
Whither  they,  at  the  master's  further  word, 
Followed  it,  as  with  frolic  leap  to  death, 
And  brought  it  safely  to  the  wave-washed  shore. 
Then  Stephen  and  Eunice,  each  to  each 
As  if  in  a  symbolic  bond  of  fate 
Linked,  with  a  length  of  rope  allowing  play 
Between  them  for  their  wrestle  with  the  surge, 
And  having  each  in  hold  a  wooden  buoy 
Provided  with  what  might  be  firmly  grasped, 
Wieldy  in  size  yet  equal  to  support 
Them  safe  above  the  summits  of  the  sea, 
Were  lowered  by  eager  volunteers  who  all 
Sped  them  to  their  endeavor  for  the  land. 
They  reached  it  and  thanked  God  for  life  such 
prize. 

The  soldiers  that  were  bidden  overboard 
To  take  their  chance  of  swimming  to  the  beach 
Bore  with  them  lines  which,  stretched  from  ship 

to  shore, 

Became  the  means  of  saving  many  souls  ; 
The  most  were  thus,  some  buoyed  on  floats  of  wood, 


XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  377 

Some  dragged  half  drowning  through  the  sandy 

surf, 
Landed  at  last  —  forlorn,  but  yet  alive. 

Paul  was  not,  as  he  had  his  will  to  be 
Announced,  quite  last  to  leave  the  breaking  bark  ; 
Centurion  Julius  would  not  have  it  so. 
When  all  except  the  owner  of  the  ship 
And  the  shipmaster  and  himself  with  Paul 
(And  Luke,  who  would  not  quit  the  apostle's  side) 
Were  safe  ashore,  he  intervened  for  Paul. 
Now  so  it  was,  the  mast  to  which  was  tied 
The  rescue-line  beneath  the  strain  gave  way 
And  fell  with  a  great  crash  along  the  deck. 
On  this  those  four  made  fast  the  brave  old  man 
Who  with  his  counsel  and  his  cheer  had  saved 
So  many,  counting  not  his  own  life  dear 
But  seen,  the  crisis  of  the  need  now  past, 
Exhausted,  tremulous,  and  nigh  to  sink. 
Then  having  with  great  strength  —  helped  by  a 

lurch 

That  now  the  vessel  seasonably  gave  — 
Pushed  smoothly  overboard  the  noble  spar 
Entrusted  with  that  treasure  of  a  life, 


378  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

Prompt  they  plunged  after  it  into  the  brine, 
And  having  reached  it,  clung  to  it,  and  well 
Buoyed  up  upon  its  surging  lift,  were  borne 
Themselves  with  Paul  by  urgent  wind  and  wave 
Safe  to  the  beach,  where  those  arrived  before 
Met  them  with  outstretched  arms  and  cheers  and 
tears. 

The  island  of  their  refuge  and  escape 
Was  Melita:  the  Melitans  were  kind, 
And  though  they  spoke  a  tongue  not  understood 
By  Hebrew,  Greek  or  Roman  stranded  there, 
And  bore  the  name  '  barbarian  '  from  the  Greek, 
Yet  were  they  alien  not ;  in  deeds  they  used 
A  universal  language  of  the  heart. 
Kindling  a  fire,  most  grateful  —  for  the  rain 
Fell  drenching  and  the  weather  was  windy  cold  — 
Those  shipwrecked  strangers  all  they  entertained. 

Now  so  it  happened  that  to  Paul,  he  too 
Ranging  to  gather  fuel  where  he  could 
And  fetching  soon  a  fagot  to  the  fire, 
Sudden  there  sprang  a  viper  from  the  heat, 
Warmed  from  his  winter  dormancy  to  life, 
And  angry  fastened  hanging  on  his  hand. 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK. 

The  islanders  beholding  doubted  not 

But  here  some  murderer,  saved  in  vain  from  death 

By  shipwreck,  now  was  suffering  vengeance  due. 

Paul  lightly  shook  the  deadly  reptile  off 

Into  tne  flames  and  felt  no  harm.      But  they, 

The  islanders,  kept  jealous  watch  to  see 

The  doomed  victim  of  those  fatal  fangs 

Swell  with  the  venom  in  his  veins,  or  drop 

Haply  at  once  a  corpse  upon  the  ground. 

After  long  disappointed  watch,  no  sign 

Of  hurt  perceived  in  Paul,  they  changed  their  mind 

And  said  among  themselves,  "  He  is  a  god." 

The  chief  man  of  the  island,  Publius, 
Houses  and  lands  possessing  in  those  parts, 
Gave  Paul  and  his  companions  welcoming  cheer 
In  three  days'  courteous  hospitality  - 
Not  unrequited  ;  for  the  father  lay 
Wasting  with  fever  and  worse  malady 
In  the  son's  house  ;  but  Paul  went  in  to  him 
And  prayed  and  laid  his  hands  on  him  and  he 
Was  healed.     Then  others  also  of  the  sick 
Among  the  Melitans  came  and  were  healed. 
So  Paul  had  honors  from  them  thrust  on  him ; 


380  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIII. 

These  he  divided  with  a  liberal  hand 
To  all,  and  when  at  last  they  left  the  isle 
They  went  thence  laden  with  a  plenteous  store 
Bestowed  of  what  they  needed  on  their  way. 
But  all  the  winter  long  they  tarried  there, 
Waiting  for  spring  to  open  up  the  sea ; 
And  many  an  hour  was  theirs  for  various  talk, 
They  fenced  in  sunny  places  from  the  wind 
Or  grouped  about  their  outdoor  fires  for  cheer. 

The  Indian  Krishna,  uncomplaining,  bland, 
With  that  quick  quiet  eye  which  naught  escaped 
And  that  deep-studying  mind  which  rested  never, 
Had  slowly  by  degrees,  considering  all 
That  Paul  wrought  or  was  wrought  through  Paul, 

been  won- 

Against  a  passive  incredulity 
Inert  but  stubborn  and  resistant  still, 
The  instinct  and  the  habit  of  his  mind  — 
To  judge  that  Jewish  prisoner  otherwise 
Than  when  he  hearing  Paul  give  his  advice 
Unasked  about  the  conduct  of  the  voyage 
Had  fixed  on  him  the  blame  of  meddlesome. 
He  owned  an  awe  of  Paul's  authority 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  38i 

Exerted  for  the  rescue  of  the  lives 

Of  those  that  sailed  with  him ;  he  shared  the  power 

Of  hope  and  courage  that  went  forth  from  Paul, 

His  words,  his  deeds,  and,  more  than  either,  himself. 

He  did  not  quite  escape  some  sense,  inspired 

By  Paul's  thanksgiving  when  he  broke  the  bread, 

Of  other  presence  than  Paul's  own  in  Paul 

That  lifted  him  to  higher  than  himself. 

When  he  saw  Paul  from  his  uninjured  hand 

Shake  that  fell  viper  off  into  the  fire, 

He  half-confusedly  thought:    'That   seems   not 

strange ; 

Our  Indian  serpent-charmers  do  as  much.' 
But  when  those  gifts  of  healing  flowed  from  Paul, 
Not  singly,  but  in  troops  of  miracle 
Sufficing  the  whole  island  countryside, 
With  only  prayer  and  laying  on  of  hands, 
Then  at  last  Krishna  said :  '  I  do  not  know, 
Is  there  some  power  in  him  greater  than  he? 
What  power?     Not  Buddha,  unconfessed,  unknown, 
Yet  willingly  with  that  large  tolerance  his 
And  bounty  and  sweet  unconcern  to  claim 
Acknowledgement  of  his  gifts,  working  in  Paul 
Despite  —  nay,  Buddha  not,  he  long  ago 


382  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

Passed,  and  while  living  never  power  was  he, 
Though  wisdom  manifold.     Yea,  wisdom  is, 
That  know  I,  power;  but  not  the  converse  holds, 
That  power  is  wisdom  ;  and  pure  power  it  is, 
Not  wisdom,  that  in  Paul  these  wonders  works; 
No  healing  arts  he  uses,  no  medicine. 
Whence  is  the  power?     Or  what?     Is  Christ  the 
power?' 

In  sequel  of  communings  such  as  these 
Held  with  himself,  Krishna  recalled  the  thought 
Of  the  rejected  proffer  made  him  late 
By  Paul,  of  Mary's  story  of  the  Christ. 
He  now  would  hear  it,  if  but  still  he  might; 
And  so  one  calm  bright  day  when  winter  smiled 
As  if  in  dream  and  vision  of  the  spring, 
With  proud  repression  of  his  natural  pride 
He  brought  himself  to  say  to  Paul:  "  O  Paul, 
If  thy  friend  Mary  Magdalene  yet 
Will  deign  so  great  a  grace  to  me,  who  own 
My  scant  desert  of  it,  I  with  all  thanks 
Would  hear  her  tell  the  story  of  her  Lord," 
A  group  of  those  who,  loving  and  honoring  her, 
Loved  from  her  lips  again  and  yet  again 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  383 

To  hear  the  story,  old  but  ever  new, 

Of  their  beloved  Lord,  were  gathered  then, 

With  Sergius  Paulus  welcomed  of  their  band 

And  Krishna  and  the  kindly  Julius  too, 

In  a  recess  sequestered  of  the  shore 

Where  the  sun  shining  from  the  open  south 

Made  a  sweet  warmth  at  noon,  and  whence  the  sea, 

So  capable  of  fierceness,  now  was  seen 

With  many-sparkling  wavelets  beautiful 

And  gentle  in  demeanor  as  a  lamb. 

Cast  in  no  mould  of  outward  loveliness 
To  lure  the  eye,  but  of  a  native  worth 
Such  that  her  person  noble  seemed,  and  tall 
Her  stature  —  all  instinct  with  stately  grace 
Her  gesture  and  behavior  —  Mary  sat 
That  vernal  winter  noon  amid  her  friends, 
Throneless  and  crownless,  an  unconscious  queen  : 
Yet  over  all  in  her  that  made  her  state 
Seem  regal  there  presided  the  effect, 
Other  and  finer,  of  a  lofty  mind 
Arrived  through  sorrow  to  serenity, 
And  in  the  heart  of  pathos  finding  peace. 
Such,  Mary  ;  who  now  thus  took  up  her  tale: 


384  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL>         Book  xm- 

"  The  story  of  my  knowledge  of  the  Lord 

Begins  in  shadow,  shadow  of  shame  for  me ; 

At  least  I  feel  it  for  a  kind  of  shame 

To  have  been  chosen  of  demons  their  abode ; 

The  recollection  is-  a  pang  to  me. 

I  sometimes  dare  compare  it  in  my  mind 

With  what  Paul  suffers"  —and  she  glanced  toward 

Paul 

A  holy  look  of  reverence  understood  — 
"  'Thorn  in  the  flesh,'  he  calls  it,  but  my  thorn, 
Within  my  spirit  rather,  rankles  there, 
As  messenger  of  Satan  buffeting  me 
Lest  I  should  be  exalted  above  measure  — 
I,  to  whom  Christ  the  Lord  used  first  His  voice 
Uttering  that  '  Mary  ! '  when  He  from  the  dead 
Rose  in  His  glory.     Surely  I  well  should  heed 
How  Mary,  honored  so,  was  the  abode 
Once  of  seven  demons.     Why  this  should  have 

been 

I  cannot  tell,  unless  to  humble  me. 
Sometimes  my  pride  —  or  is  it  sense  of  worth, 
Sacred  and  not  rebukable  as  pride?  — 
Whispers  me,  *  Mary,  thou  wert  therefore  choice 
Of  demons  for  their  dwelling-place  on  earth, 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  385 

Because  thou  wert  pure  found  and  they  desired 
A  refuge  that  should  least  resemble  hell.' 

"  Oh,  how  they  rent  me  with  their  revelry, 
The  hideous  tumult  of  their  joy  in- sin  ! 
And  me  they  mixed  up  with  their  obscene  mirth, 
Till  half  I  doubted  it  was  I  myself 
Foaming  my  own  shame  out  from  helpless  lips 
That  blasphemed  God,  then  laughed  with  ribald 

glee. 

I  was  not  mistress  of  my  mind  or  heart ; 
Reason  in  me  was  a  distracted  realm, 
And  will  and  conscience  seemed  like  ships  at  sea 
Driven  with  fierce  winds  and  tossed  toward  hope 
less  wreck. 

"  I  wonder  at  myself  that  I  do  not 
Fight  against  God  who  strangely  suffered  it. 
But,  never,  never!     He  suffers  many  things 
Strangely,  but  I,  this  is  His  grace  in  me, 
Bow  down  at  all  of  them,  saying,  'Amen  !' 
The  crown  of  all  my  reasons  for  believing 
That  God  is  gracious,  is  that  I  believe. 
For  why  do  I  believe,  except  that  He 
Makes  me  believe,  against  so  many  signs 


^86  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL,  Book  XIII. 

\j 

Seen  in  the  world  abroad  which  swear  in  vain 
He  is  not  good?     O,  ever-blessed  God, 
Who  let  those  demons  seven  take  up  in  me 
Their  lodgment,  that  they  might  be  so  dislodged  ! 

"  On  an  accepted  day  for  me  the  Lord 
Was  passing  through  the  city  where  I  dwelt, 
And  one  that  knew  my  miserable  case 
Implored  Him  to  have  mercy  upon  me. 
He  heard,  He  condescended,  and  He  came. 
But  how  at  His  first  footsteps  of  approach, 
How  did  those  inmates  evil  within  me  rave  ! 
What  riot,  mixed  of  panic  and  despair 
And  hatred !     The  whole  land  elect  where  Christ 
Upon  this  earth  appeared,  when  He  appeared 
Was  rife  with  insurrection  from  the  pit 
Mad  in  attempt  against  Him.      So  in  souls 
Possessed  by  spirits  from  hell,  if  Christ  drew  nigh 
Outrageous  spasms  of  futile  fury  raged. 
Those  demons  seven  in  me  usurped  me  now 
With  tenfold  more  abominable  rape. 
They  with  my  fingers  clutched  and  tore  my  hair  ; 
Gnashed  with   my  teeth,   and  flickered  with   my 
tongue ; 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  387 

They  frothed  from  forth  the  corners  of  my  mouth 

With  foul  grimace  and  execrable  grin  ; 

In  random  jaculation  hither  and  thither 

Flung  my  arms  wildly  like  a  windmill  wrought 

To  ruin  in  a  whirlwind's  vortices; 

Writhed  all  my  bodily  members,  till  I  thought, 

With  what  of  power  to  think  was  left  to  me, 

That  surely  nothing  of  corporeal  mould 

Had  strength  enough  of  life  to  suffer  more." 

While  Mary  Magdalene  told  these  things, 
Her  noble  face  took  on  disfigurement 
Expressive  of  indignant  horror  and  shame; 
And  hardly  had  she  been  still  beautiful 
But  for  a  pathos  fine  of  gratitude 
Tenderly  crescent  in  it  to  the  full, 
That  all  was  of  the  past,  no  present  pain, 
Naught  but  a  memory !     When  her  aspect  cleared 
And  she  composedly  went  on  again, 
It  was  as  if  the  full  moon  late  eclipsed 
With  clouds  rode  from  amid  them  forth  serene 
In  splendor,  regent  of  the  altered  sky. 
"Those  were  the  pangs  of  my  deliverance, 
The  throes  of  evil  possession  overcome. 


388  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

'  Come  out  of  her  ! '     He  said  ;  straight  at  that  word, 

Rending  me  like  a  travail  and  a  birth, 

They  fled,  and  left  me  as  one  slain  with  wounds. 

But  it  was  a  delicious  sense  of  death. 

I  would  be  dead  like  that  to  be  at  peace  ! 

I  hugged  the  death-like  trance  in  which  I  lay, 

Until  another  word  from  the  same  voice 

Made  it  seem  sweeter  yet  to  live  indeed. 

•  I  say  unto  thee,  Maid,  arise  ! '      I  heard 

And  I  arose,  obeying,  I  knew  not  how ; 

It  was  as  resurrection  from  the  dead, 

Or  first  creation  out  of  nothingness." 

The  Indian  bent  on  Mary  telling  all 
A  fixed  and  eager  heed  that  veiled  itself, 
As  wont  was  to  this  devotee  of  Buddh, 
Under  a  mask  of  face  expressionless. 
He  quenched  in  silence  of  quick  second  thought 
Impulses  strong  to  speak  and  quit  himself 
Of  doubts  and  questions  starting  in  his  mind. 
He  abode  mute,  and  Mary,  after  pause 
Filled  to  each  one  with  various  thought,  resumed 
"  How  glad  was  I,  and  grateful,  when  the  Lord 
Permitted  me,  with  other  women  too 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  389 

Healed  by  Him  of  distresses  like  to  mine, 

To  follow,  in  the  ways  of  Galilee, 

His  footsteps  as  He  went  from  place  to  place 

On  His  unending  rounds  of  doing  good  ! 

He  had  not  where  to  lay  His  head,  was  poor 

Though  making  many  rich  ;  and  it  was  joy 

Unspeakable  to  us  to  minister 

Out  of  our  substance  to  His  daily  needs. 

'  Give  to  us  day  by  day  our  daily  bread,' 

The  prayer  was  that  He  taught  us.     God  through  us 

Answered  that  prayer  to  Him  and  we  were  glad  ! 

"  Not  all  those  whom  he  cleansed  of  spirits  foul 
Inhabiting  and  defiling  them  did  He 
Permit  to  follow  with  Him  as  they  wished. 
One  man,  perhaps  as  sorely  vexed  as  I, 
Being  healed,  entreated  leave  to  stay  with  Him. 
It  may  be  there  was  some  defect  of  faith, 
Whence  fear  in  him  lest  he,  not  with  the  Lord, 
Might  again  be  invaded  by  that  host 
Of  wicked  angels  whom  he  '  Legion '  called, 
And  Jesus  out  of  kindness  was  austere, 
To  exercise  him  to  a  better  trust 
Needing  not  crutch  of  sight  to  stay  itself. 


390  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

I  know  not ;  this  I  know,  and  rest  content, 
He  doeth  all  things  well,  His  choice  is  wise. 
The  Master  sent  that  man  away,  and  bade : 
'  Return  to  thine  own  house  and  publish  there 
How  great  things  God  hath  done  to  thee.'     He 

went 

And  rilled  that  favored  city  with  the  fame. 
Who  knows?     It  may  have  been  a  better  lot, 
More  blessed,  to  sound  forth  the  Savior's  praise 
And  thus  prepare  him  welcome  among  men, 
As  did  that  healed  demoniac,  than  to  be, 
As  I  was,  near  His  person  in  the  flesh. 
But  nay,  nor  more  nor  less,  no  difference,  all 
Is  equal,  and  all  blessed  perfectly, 
To  all  that  simply  meet  His  blessed  will !  " 

Some  subtle  charm  of  eloquence,  made  up 
The  listener  thought  not  how,  thought  not  indeed 
That  there  was  any  charm  of  eloquence — • 
Manner  perhaps,  a  flexure  of  the  voice, 
Accent  of  clear  simplicity  with  depth, 
A  strand  of  pathos  braided  into  it, 
The  capture  of  an  all-subduing  eye  — 
These  things  in  her,  but  more  than  these,  herself, 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  39! 

Say  rather  the  Spirit  of  God  inhabiting  her, 

Made  Mary  speaking  irresistible. 

Krishna  did  not  withstand  the  undoing  spell, 

But  yielded  more  and  more,  as  still  she  spoke  : 

"  O,  it  was  dreadful  to  behold  his  case, 

That  demon-ridden  man's !     No  clothes  he  wore, 

But  fetters  and  chains  instead,  which  could  not  bind 

His  frantic  strength  to  hold  him  anywhere. 

Like  a  wild  beast  in  lair  he  lived  abroad 

Housed  but  in  rocky  hollows  of  the  hills. 

No  man  dared  pass  his  way,  so  fierce  was  he, 

Cutting  himself  with  stones  among  the  tombs. 

When  he  saw  Jesus  coming,  still  far  off, 

He  ran  toward  Him  and  prostrate  worshipped  Him, 

Crying  with  a  most  lamentable  voice  : 

'  Lo,  what  have  I  to  do  with  thee,  O  Thou 

Jesus,  Thou  Son  of  God  Most  High  ?     I  plead 

And  I  adjure  Thee  by  the  name  of  God 

That  thou  torment  me  not !  '     For  Christ  had  said, 

'  Thou  unclean  spirit,  come  thou  forth  from  him  ! ' 

'  What  is  thy  name  ? '  asked  Jesus  ;  and  he  said  : 

4  Legion,  for  we  are  many.' 

"  What  was  strange 


392  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII. 

Then  happened  ;  for  the  demons  prayed  from  Christ 

To  be  not  wholly  banished  from  the  land. 

'Send  us,'  they  cried,  'into  the  swine'  —  for  near 

Were  feeding  a  great  herd  of  swine  —  and  Christ 

Gave  them  their  whim  to  enter  into  them. 

Wherefore,  I  cannot  tell  ;  the  Sadducees 

Among  our  people  had  no  faith  in  spirits, 

Angels  or  demons  ;  so  it  may  have  been 

To  show  it  no  mere  foolish  fancy  vain, 

As  they,  the  Sadducees,  had  taught  it  was, 

That  there  are  wicked  beings,  other  than  we, 

Unseen  and  spiritual,  errant  in  the  world, 

And  that  these  sometimes  truly  may  invade 

The  holy  of  holies  of  the  human  mind, 

That  sanctuary  meant  for  God's  indwelling, 

And  wrest  it  to  their  own  foul  purposes. 

No  Sadducee  I  trow  had  Sadducee 

Remained,  that  saw  that  day  the  hideous  rout 

Made  when  those  swine,  two  thousand  hoofs 

together, 

Rushed  headlong  down  the  lakeside  precipice 
To  perish  in  the  waters ;  reason  none, 
Save  that  the  demons  had  gone  into  them. 
It  was  not  sudden  assault  of  epilepsy  ; 


Book  XIII.  SHIPWRECK.  393 

"  Those  swine  at  least  did  not  imagine  it  all  !" 

Over  the  face  of  Mary  speaking  now 

A  moment  of  sarcastic  humor  played  - 

"A  woman  herself  possessed,  then  dispossessed, 

Of  demon  inhabitants,  may  be  forgiven 

A  little  natural  scorn  to  be  assured 

That  she  was  only  shaken  in  her  wits  !  " 

And  Mary  so  recovered  with  a  smile 

The  sweet  and  holy  candor  of  her  face. 

But  now  an  interruption  —  for  there  came 
Rudely,  from  Felix  sent,  a  minion  who, 
With  little  Felix  following  him,  to  Paul 
Drew  nigh  and  said  :  "  My  master  bids  thee  come, 
For  Simon  whom  he  honors  has  fallen  sick, 
And  he  would  have  thee  heal  him."     Summons  such 
Delivered  in  curt  wise  so  insolent, 
Betrayed  the  master  through  the  messenger. 
"  Go  tell  thy  master  that  I  come,"  said  Paul  ; 
"  Go  thou,  but  leave  the  lad  to  come  with  me." 

So  Paul  took  little  Felix  by  the  hand, 
He  well-pleased  equally  to  stay  or  go 
In  that  benign  companionship,  and  went. 
But  first  Paul  said  :  "  Perhaps  the  afternoon 


394  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIII 

Already  is  far  spent  enough,  the  cool 
And  damp  of  evening  will  draw  on  apace  ; 
To-morrow,  if  God  will  —  and  Mary  please  — 
Our  hearing  of  her  tale  may  be  renewed." 

They,  thus  dispersed,  and  slowly  following,  saw 
Paul  like  a  guardian  angel  in  the  guise 
Of  a  serene  old  man  and  venerable 
Lead  on  the  boy  and  heed  his  prattling  talk. 
He  had  the  ruffled  spirits  of  his  friends, 
Indignant  all  at  Felix's  affront, 
Composed  with  only  his  superior  pure 
Detached  Christ-like  serenity  and  calm. 


BOOK    XIV. 
MARY    MAGDALEN^. 


Paul  declines  to  undertake  the  healing  of  Simon  at 
Felix's  request.  But  Simon  had  first  refused  to  suffer  Paul's 
access  to  him,  at  the  same  time  warning  both  Felix  and  Drusilla 
of  the  evil  likely  to  result  to  their  little  son  from  a  touch  to 
him  of  Paul's  hand  which  the  sick  sorcerer  had  just  observed 
through  the  lattice.  Felix  and  Drusilla,  freshly  angered  at 
Paul,  resolve  together  on  his  destruction.  A  second  meet 
ing  assembles  to  hear  Mary's  story.  This  time  there  is  an 
interruption  occasioned  by  a  disturbing  written  message  from 
Felix,  sent  to  Julius  the  centurion,  one  of  the  listeners. 


MARY   MAGDALENfi. 

When  one  set  high,  but  hopeless  gross  in  grain 
Of  nature  —  and  through  habit  of  license  long 
And  self-indulging  pride  of  place  and  power 
Grown  grosser  —  by  reverse  of  fortune  falls, 
And  can  no  longer  wield  his  insolence 
So  widely  as  his  wish  were  and  his  wont 
Has  been,  then  often  he  will  salve  himself 
That  sore-felt  loss  of  brutal  privilege 
By  being  more  insolent  still  where  yet  he  may: 
So  Felix  now  wreaked  his  revenge  on  Paul. 
Paul  knew  him  powerless,  but  he  would  not  turn 
Retort  on  the  humiliated  man, 
Or  aught  abate  toward  him  the  obeisance  due 
The  ruler  that  he  lately  was  —  a  strict 
Respect  enforced  by  his  own  self-respect. 

Felix  had  with  fair  princely  promises  — 
Commended  to  those  simple  islanders 
By  large  report  of  recent  royal  state 
His  and  of  prospects  brighter  yet  at  Rome, 


398  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

As  by  Drusilla's  airs  of  queen  —  made  shift 
To  lodge  himself  commodiously  with  his  train  : 
Under  his  roof  apart  Simon  lay  sick. 

"Thou  hast  heard  doubtless  what  I  would  from 

thee"- 

So  without  greeting  Felix  said  to  Paul  — 
"  Thy  trick  of  healing  for  a  gentleman 
I  have  the  humor  to  regard  with  love. 
A  fellow-countryman  of  thine  he  is, 
Something  too  of  a  fellow-conjurer" 
And  Felix  grinned  at  his  own  pleasantry; 
"  He  has  fallen  sick  in  this  accursed  place. 
'  Physician,  heal  thyself,'  thou  wilt  say  to  him, 
For,  aye,  he  is  helpless  for  his  own  relief. 
Heal  him;  thou  shalt  not  unrewarded  go. 
I  think  that  I  can  serve  thy  cause  at  Rome, 
Where  there  is  need  greater  than  thou  wouldst 

guess. 

For  they  love  justice  there  so  well  they  sell 
It  high ;  great  sums,  money  in  hand,  they  want ; 
Or  preferably  sometimes  they  will  commute 
For  other  things  than  money  still  dearer  to  men. 
A  mighty  mart  is  Rome ;  they  barter  there 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  399 

Justice  for  pleasure,  pleasure  in  various  kinds, 
Most  of  it  such  as  thou  couldst  not  provide - 
Unless  indeed  thy  pretty  countrywoman  — 
But  a  sharp  spearthrust  look,  shot  forth  from  Paul, 
Sudden  as  lightning  and  as  branding  bright, 
Broke  that  word  off,  and  Felix  faltered  on 
With  forced  resumption  of  his  insolence  : 
"  A  good  round  price  they  ask,  whatever  the  kind. 
Have  me  for  friend  at  court  and  thou  shalt  thrive. 
Simple  and  easy  ;  make  this  gentleman  well, 
Nothing  but  that  ;  just  a  few  mumbled  words, 
A  magic  touch  of  hand,  presto,  all's  done. 
What  thou  art  giving  to  these  wretches  here, 
These  beggarly  Melitans,  with  no  reward 
Except  the  fun  of  seeing  them  jump  for  joy, 
Look,  I  am  purchasing  from  thee  at  great  price. 
But  stay,  thy  patient  has  not  yet  been  told 
What  thus  is  planned  for  him.     Let  me  prepare 
Thy  way  a  little,  ere  thy  task  thou  try." 

When  Felix  entered  where  the  sorcerer  lay 
The  peevish  sick  man  was  the  first  to  speak  : 
"  That  Paul  had  little  Felix  by  the  hand  ; 
Just  now  I  saw  him  through  the  lattice  here. 


400  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

It  is  an  evil  hand,  beware  of  it. 

Its  touch  brings  certain  mischief  where  he  will, 

And  that  toward  thee  and  thine  he  will,  be  sure." 

Felix  was  startled,  but  he  cheerily  said  : 

"  Go  to,  I  was  just  bargaining  with  Paul 

To  have  him  use  his  laying  on  of  hands 

For  thee,  good  Simon.     Cheer  thee  up,  my  man ; 

We  shall  soon  have  thee  out  of  this."     But  he  : 

"  Paul  shall  not  touch  me,  shall  not  look  at  me. 

I  fear  him,  and  I  hate  him  ;  out  upon  him  !  " 

"  Listen  to  reason,  Simon,"  Felix  said  ; 

"  Thou  canst  not  doubt  he  really  works  strange 

cures ; 

There  was  the  father  of  Sir  Publius, 
And  scores  of  sick  among  this  native  rabble 
Have  come  out  whole  from  under  those  same  hands." 
"  It  served  his  turn,"  piped  Simon.      "  It  shall  serve 
No  less  his  turn  to  heal  thee,"  Felix  said ; 
"  I  have  made  it  his  account  to  play  us  true." 
"  Hark  thee,  my  master,  for  this  word  stands  fast," 
Said  Simon,  rousing  halfway  from  his  bed, 
"  I  will  have  none  of  Paul ;  I  will  get  well 
From  spite,  rather  than  have  those  hands  on  me." 
And  Simon  moved  in  act  as  if  to  rise  ; 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  401 

But  Felix  stayed  him  still  his  bed  to  keep. 
Then,  thwarted,  he  returned  to  Paul,  and  said  : 
"  He  will  not  let  thee  lay  thy  hands  on  him, 
A  fit  of  foolish  stubbornness,  he  fears 
Thee,  or  pretends  he  fears  ;  he  certain  hates 
Thee,  no  pretence.     Well,  he  is  right  perhaps ; 
You  fellow-Jews  ought  to  know  one  another. 
But  /would  trust  thee,  Roman  as  I  am." 
(Vaunting  his  Roman  franchise  Felix  thus 
His  clinging  freedman's  quality  betrayed)  ; 
"  That    is,  safe    pledge    in    hand,  thou    under- 

standest, 

Such  as  I  hold,  thou  knowing  well  thy  life 
Hangs  on  my  word  for  thee  at  Rome  ;  would  trust 
Thee,  nay,  I  trust  thee,  Paul,  and  thou  shalt  yet 
Despite  this  worthy's  Jewish  contumacy, 
Heal  him,  ha!   ha!   without  his  knowing  it. 
Put  him  to  sleep,  thou  canst  ;  thou  hast  the  drugs 
Doubtless  will    soundly  do    it ;    compound    them 

thou, 

And  I  will  undertake  he  swallows  them. 
Then  thou  canst  fetch  thy  passes  with  the  hand 
At  leisure  over  all  his  ailing  frame, 
And  heal  him  —  joke  as  it  were  at  his  expense  !  " 


402 


THE  EPIC  OP  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 


Paul  had  stood  listless  with  his  eyes  downcast 
And  with  his  heart  withdrawn  from  what  he  heard, 
And  Felix  had  felt  effect  that  penetrated 
Yea  even  his  triple  mail  of  insolence 
And  dashed  him  sore  ;  he  had  rallied  all  his  force 
Against  it  to  maintain  his  tone  assumed 
Of  falsely-festive  brutal  cynicism. 
Helplessly  dumb  he  hearkened,  while  Paul  replied  : 
"  Lord  Felix  cannot  know  the  grace  of  God, 
Whereof  mine  is  but  trust  and  stewardship. 
My  power  of  healing  is  not  mine,  but  God's  ; 
I  have  it,  not  to  use  it  as  I  will, 
But  as  God  wills,  who  shows  His  will  to  me. 
I  dare  not,  would  not,  use  it  otherwise, 
I  could  not,  He  would  take  it  away  from  me; 
Would  not  continue  it  rather,  for  it  is 
Dependent  momently  on  His  immanent  will. 
I  had  no  hint  from  Him  as  of  behest 
That  I  accomplish  thine  announced  desire. 
I  might  have  promptly  sent  thee  back  such  word 
By  thine  own  messenger  ;  but  I  had  seemed 
So  to  be  wanting  somewhat  in  the  heed 
Due  to  thy  station  ;    I  therefore  came  myself 
To  tell  thee,  O  lord  Felix,  to  thy  face, 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  403 

That  I  am  servant  of  the  Most  High  God, 

Subject  as  such  to  no  man's  bidding-,  thine 

Or  other's,  and  not  free  to  mine  own  choice. 

Yet  so  I  half  misrepresent  myself, 

For  to  mine  own  choice  I  feel  wholly  free, 

My  choice  being  His  who  works  in  me  to  choose. 

Toward  Simon,  although  he  love  me  not,  I  bear, 

God  is  my  witness,  no  ill  will  ;  instead, 

Would  I  could  serve  him  !  and  perhaps  I  might, 

I  know  not,  were  his  heart  but  right  with  God. 

Let  him  renounce  his  ways  of  wickedness  ; 

God  to  all  men  is  good  who  will  repent. 

But  His  face  is  as  fire  not  to  be  quenched, 

Wrathful,  devouring  to  the  uttermost, 

Against  all,  no  respect  of  person,  who 

Strengthen  themselves  in  their  iniquity. 

None  shall  escape  at  last,  although,  because 

God's  judgment  is  a  while  delayed,  they  may 

Dream  that  it  never  will  descend  on  them. 

Delay  is  but  forbearance,  not  neglect ; 

God's  goodness  leadeth  to  repentance  ;  woe, 

Woe,  yea,  and  sevenfold  woe,  alight  on  those, 

All,  who  despise  that  grace  of  God  in  Christ ! " 


404 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 


No  shudder  of  terror  swept  over  Felix  now, 
As  when  that  wave  of  trembling  shook  him  so 
At  Csesarea  in  the  judgment  hall. 
He  recognized  an  echo  in  Paul's  words 
Of  what  he  heard  that  day  from  those  same  lips 
And  then  thought  dreadful.      '  Strange,'  he  dully 

mused, 
'  How  moments  of  weakness  sometimes  find  out 

men  ! 

Why  should  I  then  have  feared,  and  naught  to  fear, 
Save  words,  mere  words?     Solemnly  spoken,  aye, 
And  I  could  not  but  hearken  to  the  man, 
Majestic  in  his  gesture  and  austere. 
Even  now  I  sit  and  listen  to  the  voice, 
But  I  am  fenced  and  mailed  that  it  hurts  not. 
Would  that  I  felt  but  half  as  safe  from  Rome ! ' 

So  Felix  in  a  half  unconscious  sort 
Heard  Paul's  words  then  hollow  and  meaningless  ; 
Only  rebounded  from  them  to  the  doubt, 
The  hateful  haunting  doubt,  of  what  lay  hid 
Within  the  horizon  of  this  present  world 
For  him ;  deaf,  since  that  day  of  final  doom, 
To  Sinai  thundering  from  the  world  to  come ! 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  405 

Two  witnesses  had  witnessed  that  which  passed 
Thus  between  Paul  and  Felix :  secret  one, 
Eavesdropper  from  behind  a  hanging  nigh, 
Felix's  jealous  and  suspicious  spouse 
Drusilla ;  one  in  open  view,  and  frank, 
Observant  while  obtrusive  not,  well-poised 
In  sense  of  self-effacing  loyalty, 
Young  Stephen,  shadow  of  his  uncle  Paul. 
He,  as  of  course,  fulfilling  duty,  went 
Wherever  his  illustrious  kinsman  went, 
If  aught  of  peril  to  him,  or  need,  could  there 
By  watchful   love   be   guessed.       Paul    now  by 

Stephen 

Attended  from  that  alien  presence  forth, 
Drusilla  from  her  hiding  burst,  and  cried  : 
"  A  Jewish  mother's  curse  fast  cling  to  Paul, 
False,  renegade  Jew,  who  has  his  cursing  hand 
Folded  on  little  Felix's  this  day  ! 
Heed  Simon,  and  beware  of  Paul.      O,  why, 
Why  didst  thou,  couldst  thou,  think  of  summoning 

him, 

Hated  of  all  his  nation  so,  to  blight 
The  hope  and  fortune  of  our  shaken  house 
With  creeping  leper's  plague  upon  our  boy ; 


4o6  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

Or  perhaps  other  mischief  worse  than  that  ! 
O,  Felix  !  Felix  !  O,  my  lord,  my  lord  !  " 

Such  woman's  wailing  and  upbraiding  broke 
All  the  man's  force  in  Felix  to  withstand. 
He  joined  his  imprecations  upon  Paul 
And  swore  her  ready  oaths  to  work  him  woe. 
Then  as  the  pair  conspired  in  vengeful  vows 
Against  him,  mutually  to  each  other  pledged, 
''With  that  young  cub  of  his  too,"  Felix  said, 
"  Fair-favored  as  he  is,  a  meddlesome  lad, 
Following  his  greybeard  uncle  round  about 
With  spaniel  looks  and  watch-dog  carefulness ; 
And  our  friend  Sergius  Paulus,  understood  !  " 

Simon  made  good  his  threat  of  getting  well, 
And  fostered  and  fomented  all  he  could 
The  viperous  hatch  of  hatred  against  Paul. 
Stephen  reported  to  his  company 
The  incident  and  the  spirit  of  the  scene 
Beheld  by  him  enacted  between  Paul 
And  Felix  ;  and  all  knew  full  well  the  dark 
Presage  of  consequence  for  Paul  it  bore. 

A  little  more  deeply  shadowed  in  their  mind. 


Book  XIV.  MARY 

Pathetically  hopeful  yet  in  God, 

They  met  next  clay  again,  as  had  been  planned, 

In  the  same  spot  with  the  same  weather  still 

Prolonging  that  winter  interlude  of  spring, 

When  Mary  thus  her  broken-off  tale  resumed: 

"The  wonder  of  the  works  that  Jesus  did, 

Wonderful  as  they  were  for  grace  and  power, 

Was  less  than  of  the  words  that  Jesus  spake. 

'Spirit  and  life'  these  were,  as  Himself  said. 

Once  I  remember,  near  Gennesaret, 

On  a  green  grassy  mound  which  swelled  so  high 

That  mountain  even  it  meetly  might  be  called, 

Sitting  Him  down  as  on  a  natural  throne 

Of  kinglike  gentle  state,  there,  with  the  waves 

Of  that  bright  water  kneeling  at  His  feet 

And  the  blue  cope  of  sky  canopying  His  head, 

He  His  disciples  round  about  Him  drew 

And  taught  us  of  the  coining  kingdom  of  heaven. 

'  Blessed  the  poor  in  spirit,'  He  began, 

'  For  unto  them  belongs  the  kingdom  of  heaven ; 

Blessed  the  souls  that  mourn,  for  in  God's  time 

They  shall  be  comforted ;  blessed  the  meek, 

For  theirs  the  heritage  of  the  earth  shall  be ; 

Blessed  the  souls  ahungered  and  athirst 


407 


4o8  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

For  righteousness,  for  they  shall  yet  be  filled ; 

Blessed  the  merciful,  for  mercy  they 

In  turn  shall  find  ;  blessed  the  pure  in  heart, 

For  they  God's  face  shall  see  ;  blessed,  who  make 

Peace  among  men,  for  they  shall  thence  be  called 

Children  of  God  ;  blessed,  who  for  the  sake 

Of  righteousness  shall  persecuted  be, 

For  unto  them  belongs  the  kingdom  of  heaven.'  ' 

"  I  cannot,"  interrupting  so  herself, 
Said  Mary,  "  cannot  ever  make  you  know 
How  like  a  heavenly-chanted  music  flowed 
The  stream  of  these  beatitudes  from  Him. 
The  lovely  paradox  of  blessedness 
Pronounced  upon  the  persecuted,  seemed 
So  like  the  purest,  simplest  reasonableness, 
When  those  unfaltering  lips  declared  it  true ! 
All  things  seemed  easy  and  certain  that  He  said ; 
Certain,  yet  some  things  awful  and  austere  ; 
As  when  in  that  same  speech  with  altered  strain 
He  sternly  spake  of  judgment  and  hell-fire; 
It  was  as  if  the  mount  whereon  He  sat, 
Verdurous  and  soft,  were  into  Sinai  turned, 
And  muttered  thunder.      But  when  with  a  change 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE. 


409 


And  cadence  indescribable  He  said: 

'  Love  ye  your  enemies,  and  them  that  curse 

You,  bless,  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you,  pray 

For  them  that  use  you  only  with  despite 

And  persecute  you  still,  that  ye  may  be 

The  children  of  your  Father  in  the  heavens, 

For  He  His  sun  maketh  to  rise  alike 

Upon  the  evil  and  upon  the  good, 

And  without  difference  sendeth  rain  upon 

The  just  with  the  unjust.      For  if  ye  love 

Them  that  love  you,  what  have  ye  for  reward  ? 

Do  not  the  oppressive  publicans  the  same? 

And  if  your  brethren  only  ye  salute, 

What  more  than  others  do  ye  do  ?     Do  not 

The  oppressive  publicans  likewise?     But  ye, 

Be  perfect,  as  your  heavenly  Father  is  : ' 

And  then  when,  closing,  with  authority 

He  said  :  '  Whoever  heareth  these  sayings  of  Mine 

And  doeth  them,  I  will  liken  him  to  one 

Who  wisely  built  his  house  upon  a  rock  ; 

The  rain  descended  then  and  the  floods  came 

And  the  winds  blew  and  beat  upon  that  house, 

And  it  fell  not,  being  founded  on  a  rock  : 

And  every  one  that  heareth  these  sayings  of  Mine 


410  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

And  doeth  them  not,  he  shall  be  likened  to  one 

Who  foolishly  his  house  built  on  the  sand  ; 

The  rain  descended  then  and  the  floods  came 

And  the  winds  blew  and  beat  upon  that  house  — 

It  fell,  and  mighty  was  the  fall  thereof  ;  ' 

When  thus,  I  say,  He  tempered  His  discourse, 

Sweetness  and  awfulness  were  blended  so 

In  His  majestic  and  benignant  mien 

As  never  yet  I  knew  them — never  until 

They  met  and  kissed  each  other  at  Calvary. 

That,"  Mary  with  a  look  toward  Krishna  said, 

After  a  pause  of  reminiscence  mute, 

"  That  was  when  Jesus  died  upon  the  cross." 

"Tell  me  of  that,"  said  Krishna  answering  her, 

Forgetful  for  an  instant  of  reserve  ; 

Then  added  with  self-recollection  swift : 

"  But  all  in  order  due,  or  as  thoti  wilt, 

For  I  am  debtor  to  thy  courtesy, 

And  I  shall  listen  fain  to  what  thou  sayest, 

All,  and  however  thou  shalt  order  it. 

I  find  thy  Master's  doctrine  sweet  to  hear, 

And  partly  not  unlike  our  Buddha's  strain." 

"  Perhaps  our  guest,  if  I  may  name  him  such," 

Downcast  toward  Krishna  turning,  Mary  said  — 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE,  41  I 

"  Most  welcome  we  all  make  him,  I  am  sure, 

To  this  our  simple  hospitality 

Of  converse  or  of  audience,  wherein  I 

Seem  to  be  bearing  here  a  part  too  large  — 

Perhaps,"  repeated  Mary,  "  now  our  guest 

Will  tell  us  something  of  his  master  Buddha  " 

She  therewith  resting,  as  to  yield  him  room. 

"Another  day,  if  I  may  choose,  for  that," 

Said  Krishna  ;  "  pardon  me  my  hasty  word, 

And  pray  thee  let  thine  own  tale  choose  its  way." 

Then  Mary  :   "  It  were  sad  to  tell  the  end, 
How  Jesus  died,  save  that  He  afterward 
Rose  gloriously,  and  that  before  He  died, 
In  prospect  near  of  dying,  He  spake  words 
So  gracious  and  so  full  of  victory  ! 
How  well  we  know  it  now  ;  but,  alas,  then 
Our  hearts  were  holden  and  we  did  not  know  ! 
Strange  that  we  did  not  know,  for  oft  he  said, 
Oft,  and  in  many  ways,  remembered  since, 
That  He  would  die  and  after  rise  again. 
Yet,  at  the  last,  when  He  of  dying  spake, 
Our  hearts  were  charged  with  sorrow,  and  when  He 
died 


412  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIV, 

Our  hearts,  they  broke  with  sorrow  and  with  no 
hope. 

"  O,  it  was  beautiful,  most  beautiful  — 
It  seems  so  to  the  backward-looking  eye, 
Which  sees  it  now,  when  all  is  over  and  done, 
The  shame  and  sharpness  of  the  cross  gone  by, 
And  He  safe  sitting  in  the  glory  of  God- 
Beautiful  and  pathetic  beyond  words 
(Pathetic  still,  though  all  be  over  and  done, 
Secure  the  issue  and  blessed),  the  way  in  which 
Our  Savior  faced  His  future  welcoming  it, 
That  future  with  its  unescapable  cross, 
Its  mystery  of  His  Father's  smile  withdrawn  ! 
For  truly,  though  our  Lord  by  faith  foreknew 

The  end  beyond  the  seeming  end,  the  dawn 

* 
To  be  after  the  shadow  of  the  night  — 

The  dawn,  the  day,  the  everlasting  day!  — 
Yet  horror  possessed  His  almost-drowning  soul 
Of  that  which  He  must  suffer  ere  the  end. 
Peter  and  James  and  John  told  us  of  how, 
Alone  of  all  companionship,  retired 
From  them  even  whom  He  had  chosen  to  be  with 
Him, 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE. 

He,  in  the  garden  of  Gethsemane 
At  midnight  of  the  night  before  the  cross, 
Prayed,  and  in  agony  great  drops  of  blood 
Shed  as  in  sweat,  desiring  with  desire 
To  have  the  cup  removed  that  He  must  drink. 
It  could  not  be,  it  was  not,  dread  of  death, 
Though  painful  and  though  shameful,  shook  Him 
so—" 

So  Mary,  swerved  to  sudden  wonder,  said, 
And  question  in  her  look  as  if  for  Paul. 
Paul  answered  :  "  Nay,  oh,  nay,  not  dread  of  death  ; 
That  cup  how  many,  finite  like  ourselves, 
Have  taken  and  quaffed  with  overcoming  joy 
In  martyrdom  for  truth  !     Some  mixture  worse, 
O,  unimaginably  worse  !  to  Him 
Embittered  His  inevitable  cup, 
That  He,  beyond  His  human  brethren  brave, 
So  shrank  from  drinking  it.     His  was  to  bear, 
As  Lamb  of  God  in  sacrifice,  the  weight 
Of  the  world's  sin.     This  crushed  Him  sinless  down 
Immeasurable  abysses  into  woe, 
The  woe  of  feeling  forsaken  by  His  God. 
Supported  by  believing  in  the  joy 


4H 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 


Far  set  before  Him  He  endured  the  cross, 
Despising  the  shame,  and  is  in  sequel  now, 
We  know,  and  love  to  know,  at  the  right  hand 
Of  God  His  Father  throned  forevermore, 
There  waiting  —  He,  inheritor  of  the  name 
Exalted  high  above  whatever  name, 
The  name  of  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords  — 
Until  His  footstool  all  His  foes  be  made." 

"Amen  !  "  in  fervent  chorus,  Krishna  heard 
Break,  soft  and  solemn,  from  the  lips  of  all, 
With  Mary,  who  then  thus  her  tale  renewed  : 
"  Before  His  passion  in  Gethsemane 
And  on  the  cross  loomed  nigh  enough  to  Him 
To  cast  its  solemn  shadow  deep  and  dark 
Over  His  prophet  mind  and  over  us, 
We  had  been  walking  joyous  through  the  land, 
Green  flowery  land  it  was  of  hill  and  dale, 


With  flocks  and  herds,  and  villages  of  men, 

The  land  of  Galilee,  gushing  with  springs, 

r  ^ 
And  spreading  fair  her  lake  Gennesaret,      v*  y^/i 

Now  placid  a  pure  mirror  to  the  sky, 

Anon  tumultuous,  if  rash  wing  of  wind 

Swooped  down  upon  it  from  the  mountain  shore  — 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  415 

We  had  been  walking  through  this  lovely  land 

With  Jesus,  He,  like  sower  gone  forth  to  sow, 

Scattering  His  gifts  of  healing  everywhere 

Broadcast  about  Him  as  He  passed  along; 

Or  sometimes  feeding  the  great  multitudes 

That,  like  to  sheep  having  no  shepherd,  thronged 

His  way,  feeding  them  freely  from  a  hand 

That  multiplied  the  bounty  it  bestowed;  — 

It  was  like  journeying  sphered  with  journeying  spring 

Created  for  us  where  we  set  our  feet ; 

Our  hearts  were  garlanded  as  for  festival, 

So  gladsome  was  it  to  behold  our  King 

Advancing  in  such  progress  through  the  land 

And  lavishing  such  largess  on  His  poor. 

But  largess  of  beneficence  from  His  hand 

Was  nothing  to  the  largess  from  His  lips 

Of  wisdom  and  of  grace  and  of  good  news- 

To  the  obedient ;  the  rebellious  He 

Judgments  and  terrors  dire  announced  against 

That  fastened  and  kindled  like  Gehenna  fire. 

I  was  baptized  with  shuddering  but  to  hear 

The  woes  leap  living  from  those  holy  lips  — 

Which  then  nigh  seemed  to  smoke  like  Sinai  top 

With  indignation  —  on  the  Pharisees. 


4 1 6  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIV. 

The  Sadducees,  the  lawyers,  and  the  scribes, 
Unworthy  found  and  judged  for  hypocrites. 
Most  fearful  as  most  fair  theophany,  He  ! 
One  looked  to  see  them  flame,  as  lightning-struck, 
Those  cities  of  people  that  rejected  Him, 
Bethsaida,  Chorazin,  and  that  proud 
Capernaum,  when  on  them  His  woes  He  launched, 
Hurtling  them  from  His  mouth  like  thunderbolts. 

"To  ears  fresh  wounded  from  such  frightful  woes, 
How  balmy  and  how  healing  were  these  words 
Cadenced  ineffably  from  those  same  lips : 
'  Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that  labor,  ye 
That  heavy  laden  are,  come  ye,  and  I 
Will  give  you  rest.      My  yoke  upon  you  take 
And  learn  of  Me,  for  meek  and  lowly  in  heart 
Am  I,  and  ye  rest  to  your  souls  shall  find.' 

"  With  invitation  or  with  warning  He 
Or  with  most  sweet  instruction  heavenly  wise, 
Our  soul,  our  senses,  feasting  thus,  the  while 
He  wrought  too  with  that  easy  omnipotence 
His  manifold  mighty  miracles  of  grace, 
We  walked  long  time  with  Jesus ;  how  long  time 
I  know  not,  for  the  days  and  weeks  they  came 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENK. 

And  went  unnoted  and  the  seasons  changed. 
But  at  last  He,  how  shall  I  say  it?  became 
Almost  a  different  being  from  Himself. 
He  spake  of  a  mysterious  hour,  '  Mine  hour,' 
He  called  it  with  some  solemn  meaning,  what, 
We  could  not  or  we  did  not  then  divine, 
Couched  in  the  word  ;  that  hour  was  now  drawn 

near. 

It  seemed  to  frown  upon  Him  imminent 
And  cast  a  somber  shadow  on  His  face. 
He  dreaded  it,  and  yet  He  welcomed  it, 
Hasting  the  more  to  meet  it  as  it  neared. 

We  were  afraid  of  Him,  with  a  new  fear, 
He  looked  so  awful  in  His  loneliness. 
For  He  no  longer  with  us  walked  ;   He  walked 
Before  us,  hasting  to  Jerusalem. 
How  steadfastly  His  face  was  thither  set ! 
He  as  if  saw  the  features  of  His  hour 
Coming  out  clearer  and  clearer,  and  always  there  ! 
He  now  would  oftentimes  His  chosen  twelve 
Take  from  the  rest  apart  to  tell  them  how 
The  Son  of  Man,  oft  so  He  named  Himself, 
Should  be  delivered  up  to  the  chief  priests 


4i 8  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIV. 

And  to  the  scribes,  and  be  by  them  condemned 
To  death  ;  and  how  the  Gentiles  in  their  turn 
Should  mock  Him  and  should  scourge  Him  and 

should  spit 

Upon  Him  and  should  kill  Him  ;  then  how  He 
Should  from  the  dead  the  third  day  rise  again. 
But  they  those  sayings  understood  not  then, 
So  simple  and  easy  afterward,  though  strange. 
Like  a  refrain  recurring  in  a  song, 
Some  sad  refrain  that  lingers  in  the  ear 
Persistent  through  whatever  else  is  sung, 
So  did  these  doubtful  boding  prophecies 
Again  and  yet  again,  not  understood, 
At  intervals  return  amid  the  strain 
Of  other  teaching  opulent  and  sweet 
That  flowed  and  flowed  in  changes  without  end, 
Unending,  from  His  lips.     And  all  the  while 
Were  miracles  and  signs,  as  by  the  way 
And  little  reckoned,  dropping  from  His  hands 
Like  full-ripe  fruit  from  an  unconscious  tree ! 

"  And  so  it  came  to  pass  that  we  at  length 
Were  nigh  to  Bethphage  and  Bethany. 
Here  resting,  to  a  village  opposite 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  419 

Our  Master  sent  to  fetch  an  ass's  colt 

Appointed  for  His  use,  one  virgin  yet 

Of  touch  from  human  rider  to  his  back  ; 

Thereon  the  lowly  King  sat  Him  to  ride. 

How  little  did  what  we  saw  follow  look 

Like  the  fulfilment  of  ill-boding  words  ! 

For  now  the  people  flung  their  garments  down 

Before  Him  in  the  way,  they  branches  strewed 

From  trees  on  either  side  to  keep  the  feet 

Of  even  that  ass's  colt  which  He  bestrode 

From  touching  the  base  ground,  the  while  a  shout 

Went  up,  one  voice,  from  the  great  multitude 

Before  Him  and  behind  Him  where  He  rode, 

1  Hosanna  to  the  Son  of  David  !     Lo, 

Blessed  is  He  that  cometh  in  the  name 

Of  the  Lord  God  !     Hosanna  in  the  highest ! ' 

How  little  then  to  us,  blind  eyes,  it  looked 

As  if  this  march  triumphal  of  our  King 

Was  to  a  death  of  shame  upon  the  cross!  " 

With  wondering  interruption  Julius  asked: 
"  But  how,  but  wherefore,  was  it  thus?     No  crime 
Had  Jesus  done;  and  what  suspicion  even 
Of  crime  intended  by  him  could  there  lie 


420 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 


In  any  mortal's  mind  against  a  man 

So  wise  so  pure  and  so  beneficent 

As  he  was  in  the  obvious  view  of  all  ?  " 

He  added  :  "  I  could  understand  how  some, 

Offended  at  his  stern  rebuke  of  them 

Before  the  people,  might  in  secret  wish 

His  death,  might  plot  it,  and  might  compass  it, 

By  private  means  of  murder  ;  but  how  one 

Like  Jesus  should  fall  under  law,  be  tried 

In  open  forum  as  criminal,  be  found 

Guilty,  be  sentenced,  and  be  put  to  death, 

All  as  in  process  due  of  justice,  that 

I  cannot  understand,  that  baffles  me. 

And  under  Roman  rule  and  government ! 

For  crucifixion  seems  to  mean  so  much. 

Perhaps  some  reason  of  state  demanded  it : 

Justice  must  often  yield  to  reasons  of  state." 

"  A  reason  of  state,"  said  Paul,  "was  the  pretext, 
And  but  pretext  it  was,  the  real  ground  not. 
With  deep  hypocrisy  my  nation  came 
And  pleaded  to  thy  nation  against  Him 
Pretension  on  His  part  to  be  a  king, 
Saying,  'We  have  no  king  but  Caesar; '  so 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  421 

Falsely  affecting  loyalty  to  Rome, 

And  therewith  falsely  too  attainting-  Him 

Of  treason  in  purpose  to  dispute  with  Caesar 

His  claim  of  worldly  lordship  over  them. 

Thy  nation,  Julius,  with  full  equal  deep 

Hypocrisy,  believing  the  charge  no  more 

Than   they  believed  who  brought   it,  washed  its 

hands 

Vainly  of  guilt,  condemning  innocent  blood. 
Jew  joined  with  Gentile,  Gentile  joined  with  Jew, 
In  one  conclusive  act  of  wickedness, 
That  the  whole  world  at  once  might  before  God 
Be  guilty  of  the  death  of  Christ  His  Son  ; 
Our  sin  it  was  that  slew  the  Lamb  of  God  ! " 

While  the  centurion  hung  confounded,  dumb 
With  silence  that  half  conscience-smitten  seemed, 
Pondering  Paul's  words,  charged,  heavy  charged, 

with  blame 

Involving  him  too  in  complicity 
Of  guilt  with  the  whole  world  for  Jesus'  death  - 
A  messenger  from  Felix  came  once  more  ; 
This  time  to  Julius  with  a  letter  sealed. 
Julius,  unready  for  intrusion  such 


422  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

Upon  that  moment's  privacy  of  thought, 
With  petulant  gesture  broke  the  seal  and  read 
These  brusque  words,  which,  though  writ  with 

other's  hand, 

Were  self-shown  straight  from  Felix's  own  heart; 
No  salutation,  and  no  signature, 
Ambages  none  of  complaisance  or  form, 
Frank  unrelieved  mock-kingly  insolence, 
Drusilla's  phrase,  but  spirit  Felix's : 
"  Does  it  become  a  Roman  officer 
Honored  with  grave  responsibility 
As  thou  art  for  the  custody  and  safe 
Conduct  of  arrant  criminals  to  Rome, 
To  be  consorting  with  the  chief  of  these 
In  affable  familiar  intercourse? 

How  thinkest  thou  ?  If  report  were  brought  to  Rome 
Of  such  acquittal  of  the  office  thine, 
Would  it  seem  well  ?  Dost  thou  judge  nothing  at  all 
Due  from  thee  to  the  dignity  of  trust 
Received  from  the  august  imperial  hand  ? 
Is  such  thy  measure  of  the  faith  required 
In  one  of  Caesar's  deputies?     Or  thou 
Perhaps  at  heart  art  Christian  :  ask  thyself 
If  thine  be  a  religio  licit  a  ! 


Book  XIV.  MARY  MAGDALENE.  423 

Apostate  from  the  emperor  to  Christ 
Am  I  to  recognize  in  thee?     Judge  then 
What  duty  will  demand  from  me  arrived 
At  Rome,  me  who  am  loyal  still  to  him, 
Nero  Augustus  Caesar  named  with  gods ! 

These  things  read  Julius  with  a  knitted  brow 
That  discomposure  with  resentment  showed  ; 
Then  mastering  himself  to  courtesy 
Wherein  some  air  of  condescension  played, 
He  made  his  peace  by  gesture  without  word, 
And  slowly,  like  one  doubting,  went  away. 

With  nothing  said  or  signed  to  set  in  light 
The  meaning  of  the  message  thus  conveyed, 
Paul  from  the  person  of  the  messenger, 
Well-known  a  slave  of  Felix's,  divined 
The  meaning  mischievous,  but  kept  his  thought 
And  only  said  :  "With  the  centurion  now 
Our  guest  no  longer,  and  the  clay  so  far 
Declined  from  its  meridian,  meet  perhaps 
It  were  to  let  our  interrupted  tale 
From  Mary  —  thanks  to  whom  once  more  we  owe  — 
Rest  till  to-morrow,  if  to-morrow  be 
Ours,  and  the  weather  then  still  smile  as  now: 


424  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIV. 

God  will  still  smile,  through  weather  fair  or  foul. 
And  now  to  God  our  Father  blessing  be, 
From  whom  all  blessing  is,  and  to  His  Son, 
And  to  the  Holy  Ghost.     Amen  !  " 

"Amen!" 

They  echoed  all,  with  not  even  Krishna  mute; 
Then  silently  and  solemnly  withdrew. 


BOOK    XV. 


YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX. 


Drusilla  has  a  confidential  conference  with  Simon  the 
sorcerer,  now  recovered,  though  still  weak.  He  tempts  her 
to  think  of  ensnaring  the  emperor  with  her  charms.  He 
insinuates  into  her  mind  the  idea  of  making  away  with  Felix 
on  the  ground  of  his  being  an  obstacle  in  her  path  to  success 
With  this  in  view,  he  forms  suddenly  a  plot  to  convict  Felix 
in  his  wife's  eyes  of  infidelity  to  herself.  He  easily  awakens 
Drusilla's  jealousy,  and  she,  with  her  own  motives,  enters  into 
Simon's  present  proposals.  Eunice  is  accordingly  invited  to 
visit  Drusilla  as  one  repentant  and  desirous  of  being  a 
Christian  —  Felix  having  meantime  been  filled  by  Simon 
with  the  notion  that  Eunice  is  enamored  of  him,  Felix.  She 
comes  with  her  mother  to  Felix's  house,  and  the  two  are 
there  entrapped;  but  at  the  crisis  of  danger  they  are  rescued 
by  young  Stephen. 


YOUNG    STEPHEN    AND    FELIX. 

That  bland  sweet  weather  changed  to  truculent 
At  sunset,  and  through  all  the  winter  night 
Raged  with  wild  wind  and  sleet  of  rain  and  hail. 
The  roofs,  the  doors,  the  casements,  of  the  house 
Where  Felix  and  Drusilla  sojourned,  shook 
As  toward  dilapidation  of  its  frame. 
Drusilla  lay  in  terror  of  her  life 
Tossing  upon  her  couch  and  could  not  sleep. 
Brief  intervals  and  lulls  of  tempest  came  ; 
But  images  of  distant  danger  then 
Mixed  with  the  imminent  menaces  of  the  night. 
So  with  the  earliest  morning  —  furious  yet 
The  unabated  rack  of  elements  — 
Drusilla  sent  for  Simon,  rallied  now 
Out  of  his  low  estate,  and,  tremulous, 
With  weakness,  through  that  very  weakness  made 
More  searchingly  clairvoyant  than  his  wont. 

Untimely  roused,  and  unrefreshed  with  sleep, 
And  shaken  as  still  she  was  with  panic  fears, 
The  Jewess,  ever  conscious  of  herself 


428  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XV. 

And  proudly  the  more  conscious  now  before 

One  whom  she  fain  would  hold  her  vassal,  sat 

Like  a  queen  giving  audience,  well-arrayed, 

Yet  artfully  in  speaking  seemed  to  plead. 

"  Simon,"  she  said,  "be  once  more  my  resource." 

"  Not  once  more,  but  an  hundred  hundred  times, 

Liege  lady,"  Simon  said,  "if  mine  art  serve." 

"  But,  Simon,  will  it  serve  for  no  reward  ?  " 

Drusilla,  not  without  some  pathos,  said  ; 

Yet  also  not  without  some  scrutiny 

Of  Simon,  which  that  deep  dissembler  bore 

Flinching,  but  scarcely  flinching,  as  he  said : 

"  My  fortune  I  account  bound  up  with  thine." 

"  Yea,  Simon,  what  through  thee  I  gain,"  she  said, 

"  Reckon  that  thou  no  less  gainest  through  me. 

As  has  been,  is,  our  pact ;  art  thou  content  ?  " 

"More  than  content,  most  thankful,"  Simon  said; 

"  I  pray  thee  of  conditions  now  no  more, 

But  speak  thy  wishes  ;  they  shall  be  commands." 

"Well,  faithful  Simon,"  wheedling  now  she  spoke, 

"That  proud  Drusilla  thou  once  knewest  in  me, 

Is  abject  in  sheer  sense  of  helplessness. 

My  lord  is  broken  in  spirit  with  lack  of  hope : 

I  stay  him  up,  as  best  I  may,  to  show 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  429 

The  world  some  front  of  kingly  boldness  yet, 
But  truth  is,  I  am  broken  with  staying  him. 
What  can  we  do  at  Rome  ?     How  mend  our  case  ? 
Friends  have  we  few,  and  on  the  fallen  thou  knowest 
Enemies  swarm  like  flies  on  rotting  flesh. 
All  is  for  sale  at  Rome,  but  who  can  buy 
That  goes  barehanded  thither,  as  do  we  ? 
Thou  hast  the  truth  ;  now,  Simon,  like  the  rest, 
Leave  us,  as  rats  forsake  a  doomed  ship  ! " 
"  Thou  pleasest  to  be  facetious,  O  my  queen," 
Said  Simon  ;  "  thou  barehanded  never  art, 
Go  where  thou  wilt,  with  beauty  such  as  thine, 
Such  beauty,  and  such  wit  to  use  it  well." 
With  pregnant  ambiguity  he  spoke, 
And  deeply  read  the  features  of  her  face. 

Those  features  molded  nobly  fair,  but  now 
Through  their  disfiguring  discomposure  wronged, 
Slowly  regained  the  aspect  clear  and  calm 
Wherein  the  proud  possessor  long  before 
Learned  that  her  sumptuous  beauty  best  prevailed 
To  make  her  sovereign  of  the  hearts  of  men : 
Habit,  with  reminiscence  of  her  past 
Triumphs,  usurped  her  mind  that  she  forgot 


430 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV, 


Simon,  the  raging  storm,  her  doubts  and  fears. 

Simon  considered  his  mistress  at  his  ease ; 

He  saw  she  was  not  flattered  by  his  words 

To  be  a  childlike  plaything  in  his  hands  ; 

He  saw  she  was  too  haughty  to  resent, 

Too  haughty  to  acknowledge  by  word  or  sign, 

Perhaps  too  haughty  even  to  recognize 

In  her  deep  mind,  much  more  in  heart  to  feel, 

Hint  as  conveyed  by  him  in  what  he  said 

That  in  the  marriage  markets  of  the  world 

Such  charms  as  hers  were  merchantable  ware  ; 

And  that  he  Simon  abode  at  her  command 

Loyally  ready  to  renew  for  her, 

On  some  august  occasion  still  to  seek, 

That  intermediary  office  his 

Which  once  from  King  Azizus  parted  her 

To  make  her  of  the  Roman  Felix  spouse. 

Drusilla  in  no  manner  made  response ; 
But  not  less  Simon  knew  his  wish  was  sped  ; 
He  knew  the  Venus  Victrix  heart  in  her 
Was  flattering  to  the  height  her  sense  of  power. 
He  could  not  err  by  over-audacity 
In  tempting  this  presumptuous  woman's  pride. 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  43  r 

He  ventured  :  "  It  were  loyal  service  done 

Thy  husband,  to  whom  loyal  service  thou 

Already  even  to  sacrifice  hast  done 

In  being  his  consort,  thou  a  queen  before, 

And  he"   -'but  lately  raised  from  servile  state,' 

Simon  would  fain  have  said  outright,  to  ease 

The  pressure  of  hate  and  scorn  he  felt  for  Felix, 

But  knew  he  must  no  more  than  thus  arrest 

That  word  upon  the  point  of  utterance  caught  — 

"It  were  I  say,  well-weighed,  a  service  to  him 

If  thou  shouldst  wake  the  matchless  power  thou  hast 

Of  kindling  admiration  and  desire, 

To  exercise  it  in  supreme  assay 

At  the  tribunal  where  he  must  be  judged, 

Making  the  judge  himself  thy  willing  thrall ! " 

The  subtle  sorcerer  watched  with  wary  eye 
Askance,  to  see  his  mistress  give  at  this 
Some  sign  of  pleased  and  startled  vanity : 
Impassible  placidity  he  saw- 
Serene,  withdrawn,  uninterrupted  muse. 
A  little  disconcerted,  he  bode  mute, 
Half  glad  in  hope  that  he  had  not  been  heard. 
When  at  length  she,  that  queenly  creature,  broke, 


432 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 


Herself,  with  speech  the  growing  spell  of  awe 

He  felt  upon  him  cast  by  her  supreme 

Beauty  suspense  in  its  august  repose, 

Its  silence  and  reserve  and  mystery, 

Then  Simon  knew  that  she  had  been  before 

Him  with  the  soaring  thought  of  Nero  led- 

The  emperor  of  the  world  in  triumph  led  — 

A  captive  at  Drusilla's  chariot  wheels  ! 

A  flash  of  light  invaded  Simon's  mind  : 

'  Were  there  not  hidden  here  the  way  long  sought 

To  free  himself  from  the  abhorred  yoke 

Of  Felix  ?     This  bold  woman  would  not  stick 

At  putting  such  an  obstacle  as  was 

A  husband  such  as  he,  out  of  her  path  — 

This  by  whatever  means  —  a  path  that  led 

Steep  to  enthronement  by  the  emperor's  side.' 

Thenceforward  Felix's  worst  foe  was  one 

Of  his  own  household  at  his  table  fed. 

"The  emperor  is  a  bloody  man,  if  true 
Be  all,  be  half,  that  they  report  of  him  —  " 
Drusilla  thus,  as  in  soliloquy 
Rather  than  in  discourse  to  ear  addressed, 
Spoke  slowly — "he,  the  latest  story  goes 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  Fl'.LlX. 


433 


Sped  like  a  shudder  of  horror  around  the  world, 

Has  got  his  mother  slain,  bunglingly  drowned 

By  accident  forsooth,  at  his  command — • 

Accident  such  as  asks  design  to  chance, 

A  vessel  foundering  in  a  placid  sea, 

On  a  serene  and  starry  summer  night  - 

And  after  all  not  drowned,  even  awkwardly, 

But  rescued  to  be  stabbed,  with  mother's  cry 

First  from  her  lips,  '  I  never  will  believe 

This  of  my  son  ! '  but  then  with,  '  Strike  me  here  !  ' 

Confessing  that  she  knew  it  was  her  son  ! 

And  his  young  queen  Octavia,  silly  sweet, 

And  good,  and  pure,  and  fair,  and  amiable, 

And  in  short  all  a  Roman  emperor's  spouse 

Should  not  be  —  she,  they  say,  leads  a  slave's  life, 

Or  worse,  amid  her  husband's  palace  scorned, 

And  happy  if  at  last  only  with  death 

And  not  with  shame  he  rid  her  from  his  side 

Thus  speaking,  his  bold  mistress,  Simon  knew, 
Called  up  deterrent  thoughts  so  formidable, 
Not  to  succumb  before  them  shocked,  appalled, 
But  to  confront  them  fairly,  know  them  well, 
Then  with  defiance  triumph  over  them. 


434 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 


Still,  with  slant  thrust  at  Felix  in  his  thought, 

He  dared  a  word  of  double-edged  reply  : 

"  Emperors,  and  those  however  now  ill-placed 

Yet  worthy  to  be  empresses,  are  free 

To  seek  their  consorts,  consorts  true  I  mean, 

Wherever  they  can  find  them  in  the  world  ; 

And  obstacles  must  not  be  obstacles 

To  them  ;  their  pathway  must  somehow  be  cleared. 

Such,  one  may  all  too  easily  judge  amiss. 

Wait  till  thou  see  the  emperor  fitly  wed  ! 

That  emperor-mother  Agrippina  balked 

Her  boy  too  often  of  his  wish.     She  would 

Be  empress  of  the  emperor  of  the  world ; 

Her  blood  in  him  made  this  impossible  : 

It  was  her  folly  and  crime  invoked  her  fall. 

As  for  that  young  Qctavia  —  thou  hast  said." 

"Poppaea" — so  Drusilla  had  resumed, 
But  Simon  rashly  took  the1  word  from  her: 
"  Poppaea  is  a  rival  to  be  weighed 
Doubtless  —  highborn,  and  beautiful,  and  deep 
In  cunning,  and  sure  mistress  of  herself  - 
As  art  not  thou  too,  and  full  equally  ?  — 
But  then  she  has  a  husband  in  the  way, 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  435 

And  is  she  of  the  stuff  to  deal  with  him  ?  " 

Simon's  hatred  of  his  lord  had  pricked  him  on 
Beyond  the  mark  of  prudence  ;  he  recoiled 
From  his  own  words  before  Drusilla  spoke, 
And  added,  for  diversion  of  her  thought : 
"  But  doubtless  thou  wilt  need  to  buy  thy  way 
To  opportunity  at  Rome  ;  betimes 
Prepare  thee  bribes  to  drop  along  thy  path. 
Our  Gentile  brethren  have  a  pretty  tale  " 
And  Simon  with  sarcastic  humor  leered - 
"  Of  how  a  runner  once  upon  a  time 
Won  him  a  famous  race  by  letting  fall 
Gold  apples  on  the  course  too  tempting  bright 
Not  to  delay  his  rival  gathering  them. 
Provide  thyself  with  apples  of  gold  to  drop, 
While  thou  art  speeding  featly  to  thy  goal." 
"  Gold,  Simon  !  "   Drusilla  said,  "thou  teasest  me, 
Too  well  thou  knowest  I  have  no  gold ;  our  store 
Was  swallowed  all  in  that  devouring  sea." 
"  I  speak  in  figure,  my  lady,"  Simon  said ; 
"  I  mean  neither  literal  apples  nor  literal  gold." 
"  Pray,  no  more  parable  to  me,"  severe 
With  air  resumed  once  more^of  queen  enthroned, 


436  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XV. 

Drusilla  answered,  and,  with  only  look, 

As  haughtily  disdaining  further  word, 

Demanded  that  he  make  his  meaning  plain. 

Simon,  with  indirection  sly,  replied  : 

"Hast  thou  remarked  the  daily  opening  bloom 

Of  beauty  in  the  face,  and  in  the  form, 

Of  that  Eunice,  our  young  countrywoman?" 

Drusilla  gave  a  fiercely  jealous  start  — 
On  Simon,  eagerly  alert,  not  lost, 
Brief  though  it  was,  and  instantly  subdued ; 
It  was  as  instantly  interpreted  - 
A  welcomed  effect,  though  calculated  not. 
She  had  recalled  what  late  she  overheard 
Hinted  from  Felix  to  the  prisoner  Paul, 
"  Unless  indeed  thy  pretty  countrywoman  " — 
And  construed  it  as  meaning  that  his  eye, 
Her  husband's,  had  been  levying  on  the  maid. 
"Women  are  not  like  men  to  note  such  things," 
Drusilla  answered  with  a  frigid  air, 
Yet  not  as  with  unwillingness  to  learn 
What  sequel  there  might  be  in  Simon's  thought. 
That  sequel  Simon  changed  to  suit  the  case 
He  had  now  created  unexpectedly. 


Dock  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  /•'/>:/./ X.  437 

He  would  torment  Drusilla's  jealous  mind, 
And  whet  her  temper  to  the  proper  edge 
For  helpful  quarrel  with  that  spouse  of  hers 
So  hateful  to  him. 

"  Women  that  are  wives," 
Said  Simon,  "  well  might  condescend  to  pay 
Some  heed  to  such  things  !     But  the  present  need 
Is  to  have  bribes  in  hand  of  the  right  sort 
To  lavish  where  occasion  may  arise 
When  we  reach  Rome.     Try  if  thou  canst  not  gain 
This  pretty  damsel  for  our  purposes. 
Play  patroness  to  her,  have  her  at  court 
Here  —  for  wherever  the  true  queen  is,  there 
Is  court,  though  in  a  desert  —  flatter  her, 
And  ply  her  to  thy  will.     Arrived  at  Rome, 
Where  all  is  venal  yet  venal  not  all  for  gold, 
Offer  her  as  likest  seems  to  serve  thy  cause. 
There  is  my  scheme  for  thee  ;  and  thy  lord  will, 
I  doubt  not,  wink  at  least  to  forward  it." 
Simon  could  not  forbear  the  tempting  chance 
To  end,  as  he  began,  with  what  would  bait 
Further  Drusilla's  flushed  and  jealous  mind. 

'  Is  Simon  playing  me  false  in  a  deep  game 


438  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 

To  serve  lord  Felix  at  his  wife's  expense  ? ' 

Drusilla  wondered  ;  '  would  he  dare  so  far  ? 

Does  he  even  seek  to  make  a  tool  of  me? 

Of  me,  Drusilla,  make  a  pliant  tool  — 

/  serve  their  turn  forsooth  against  myself  ? 

Be  it  so,  and  let  them  trow  their  plotting  speeds ! 

I  will  try  to  be  as  simple  as  they  could  wish.' 

In  secret  with  herself  she  wondered  thus ; 

But  spoke  aloud  with  cleared  and  brightened  look : 

"The  storm,  I  see,  which  I  had  quite  forgot, 

Thanks  to  the  charms  of  thy  society, 

Is  much  abated  ;  let  us  break  our  fast, 

And  then  go  thou  and  bid  her  hither  to  me, 

That  pretty  child.     Tell  her  I  need  her  much, 

For  I  am  deeply  sorry  for  my  sins, 

And  think  that,  with  a  little  guide  like  her 

To  take  me  by  the  hand  and  lead  me  right, 

I  could  forsake  them  all  and  follow  with  her 

Henceforward,  a  true  sister  in  the  faith. 

A  little  lure  of  harmless  simple  hope 

To  win  a  wicked  woman  from  her  ways, 

I  think  thou  wilt  find  useful  with  the  maid, 

If,  as  is  likely,  she  be  loth  to  come." 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX. 


439 


Felix,  Drusilla,  and  the  sorcerer 
That  morning  at  their  simple  meal  reclined 
Together  in  a  show  of  amity  ; 
But  inwardly  it  was  a  state  of  feud 
Or  hollow  truce  of  armed  hypocrisy. 
Eating  in  silence  with  small  appetite, 
Their  breakfast  soon  they  ended  ;  Simon  then 
Withdrew  and  did  his  errand.     He  did  more  ; 
For  having  perforce  to  meet  the  mother  too, 
Whose  daughter  was  seen  ever  at  her  side, 
He  feigned  to  be  himself  a  penitent, 
Protesting  his  belief  that  he  was  healed, 
Unworthy  to  be  healed,  because  Paul  came 
But  near  him  where  he  lay  sick  in  his  bed  ; 
And  this  although  he  had  wickedly  refused 
To  see  Paul  and  to  suffer  Paul's  hands  on  him. 
He  said  his  mistress  was  afraid,  as  he 
Was  too,  of  Felix ;  both  of  them  must  move 
Warily  no  suspicion  to  excite 
In  one  so  irritable  and  so  violent. 
They  therefore  could  not  ask  for  Paul  to  come, 
Or  indeed  any  man  among  Paul's  friends. 
But  Ruth  might  safely  come  and  bring  the  maid 
Her  daughter.     Simon  begged  the  matron  would 


440  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV 

Kindly  indulge  Drusilla's  preference, 
Caprice  perhaps  it  was,  for  making  her  child 
And  not  herself  —  senior,  and  so  more  wise 
Doubtless  —  her  chosen  guide  and  confidant. 
Eunice's  youth  had  won  Drusilla's  heart. 

All  Simon's  plausible  art  could  not  prevail        , 
To  gain  from  Ruth  the  promise  he  desired  ; 
She  only  told  him  she  would  ponder  well 
What  he  had  said  and  do  as  wisest  seemed. 
But  Simon,  cheering  himself  that  in  the  end 
Ruth  by  the  tempting  bait  held  out  to  her, 
The  hope  of  doing  good,  would  be  enticed, 
Went  straight  to  Felix,  and  with  many  a  wink 
Of  sly  salacious  import  hinted  to  him 
That  he,  his  master,  had  quite  unawares, 
With  just  his  manly  martial  front  and  port, 
Taken  captive  a  fair  Hebrew  damsel  who, 
If  all  sped  as  he  hoped,  would  soon  appear 
There  at  the  mansion,  by  her  mother  led, 
To  feed  her  fancy  on  his  noble  looks. 
The  simple  mother,  she  knew  nothing  of  it, 
But  came  to  visit  Drusilla  in  the  hope, 
Which,  naughty  child  !  the  daughter  had  inspired 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  441 

Of  gaining  my  lady  over  to  the  faith. 
Should  Felix  condescend  to  speak  to  her 
The  maid  would  be  all  blushes,  that  of  course; 
She  coyly  would  insist  she  only  came 
Bearing  her  mother  company  to  wait 
Upon  the  mistress  of  the  house  with  her. 
Felix  would  understand  how  much  was  meant, 
Or  rather  how  little,  by  the  pretty  airs 
And  arch  pretexts  of  feminine  coquetry. 

It  was  as  Simon  hoped  :  Ruth,  overcome 
In  prudence  by  her  generous  desire 
To  serve  a  soul  in  need  ;  some  natural  zeal 
Perhaps  commingling  to  bring  home  such  spoil 
Of  her  Eunice's  winning,  a  surprise 
And  joy  to  Paul  and  all  the  rest  —  so  led, 
Ruth  with  Eunice  to  Drusilla  went. 
But  not  alone  ;  Stephen  their  counsel  shared, 
And  he,  deeply  misdoubting  of  it  all, 
Went  with  them.      In  the  inner  court  he  stayed, 
Awaiting  watchful,  eye  and  ear,  while  they, 
Having  with  all  obeisance  been  received 
And  ushered  inward  by  the  instructed  slave, 
Should  do  their  errand  with  the  mistress  there. 


442  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 

He  was  disturbed,  when  Felix,  with  a  scowl 
Askance  at  him,  crossing  the  court  in  haste 
Followed  the  women  through  the  selfsame  door, 
Scarce  shut  behind  them  ere  he  entered  too. 

It  was  of  her  astute  design  and  art, 
Drusilla's,  that  her  husband  should  have  scope 
To  show  at  full  in  act  before  her  eyes 
What  ground  of  truth  there  was  for  Simon's  hints 
Against  his  faith  to  her.     She  had  hid  herself, 
Not  to  be  seen  but  see,  while  in  the  room 
Whither  the  women  were  ushered  Felix  might, 
Were  such  his  mind,  waylay  the  pretty  maid, 
Proving  himself  what  Simon  would  have  him  be. 

"  Thou  with  thy  daughter,  Madam,  art  well  come  ; 
These  are  dull  days  in  Melita  for  us," 
So,  with  a  gross  familiar  air  ill  masked 
In  mock  of  supercilious  courtesy, 
Felix  to  Ruth  ;  who  noticed  with  dismay 
That  servitor  and  servitress  at  once, 
As  if  at  silent  signal  unperceived, 
Vanished  from  presence  and  left  her  alone, 
Her  and  Eunice,  no  Drusilla  seen, 
With  Felix  and  his  bristling  insolence. 


Book  XV.    YOUNG-STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  443 

Her  fears  were  not  allayed  when  Felix  said 

Further:  "  My  lady  will  be  glad  to  see 

Thee,  Madam,  for  she  dies  of  weariness 

In  this  insufferable  place,  with  naught 

Of  new  to  while  the  endless  hours  away  ; 

But  as  for  this  our  pretty  little  maid, 

She  shall  accept  my  awkward  offices 

To  entertain  her,  while  her  mother  waits 

Apart  on  dame  Drusilla  and  chats  with  her." 

So  saying,  he  stepped  to  the  half-open  door 

And  clapped  his  hands  in  summons  for  a  slave. 

One  quickly  answered,  and  the  master  said  : 

"  Where  is  thy  mistress  ?    Take  this  madam  to  her," 

Pointing  to  Ruth. 

Ruth  in  a  whirl  of  thought 
Wondered,  '  Are  these  things  all  a  wicked  wile 
Of  Simon's  to  entrap  us  here  ?     Does  she, 
Drusilla,  too,  collude  ?     Or  does  she  know 
Nothing  of  all  ?     Or,  knowing,  does  she  fear 
Felix,  and  therefore  leave  us  helpless  thus? 
How  far  may  I  abiding  true  to  her 
Involve  Drusilla  in  a  plea  to  him?' 
She  stood,  not  stirring  at  the  servant's  beck, 


444 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 


And  spoke  in  tones  held  clear  and  firm  with  will  : 

"  It  is  my  daughter,  sir,  the  errand  has 

With  dame  Drusilla.     She  shall  go  to  her, 

And  as  the  custom  is  between  us  twain 

We  will  together  go,  for  twain  with  us 

Is  one.      Dismiss  us,  then,  I  pray,  to  go." 

"  Thou  art  hard-hearted,  Madam,"  Felix  said ; 

"  One  surely  is  enough  to  meet  the  dame 

Drusilla,  and  the  other  might  solace  me. 

I  pay  my  lady's  taste  a  compliment 

In  myself  choosing  for  my  company, 

As  seems  she  chose  for  hers,  thy  daughter  fair 

Rather  than  thee ;  for,  without  prejudice 

To  thine  own  comeliness,  thy  daughter  is, 

Thou  wilt  confess  it,  Madam,  nay,  with  pride, 

A  trifle  fresher  in  her  youthful  bloom." 

Eunice  standing  by  her  mother  glowed 
With  an  indignant  shame  sublimely  fair ; 
It  kindled  up  her  beauty  into  flame 
Dreadful  to  see,  had  he  who  saw  it  been 
But  capable  of  awe  from  virtue  shown 
Lovelier  with  noble  wrath  ;  Felix  admired 
Only  more  fiercely  and  was  not  afraid. 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  445 

* 

A  flash  of  movement  instant  changed  the  scene. 
Stephen,  who,  through  the  door  left  open,  caught 
Felix's  first  ominous  words  of  insolence, 
Had,  winging  his  feet  with  his  suspicious  fears, 
Fled  out  into  the  open — whither,  scarce  thought  - 
Yet  with  instinctive  wish  that  went  to  Paul. 
He  chanced  on  Aristarchus  walking  nigh, 
In  solitary  muse,  after  his  wont; 
Him,  with  such  instance  as  spared  needless  words, 
He  hurried  forth  to  find  and  fetch  back  Paul. 
Returning  he  dashed  swiftly  through  the  court, 
Avoiding  who  perhaps  with  servile  sloth 
Reluctant  might  have  moved  to  stay  him  there, 
And  through  the  door  where  his  Eunice  was 
Defenceless  in  that  ruthless  robber's  den. 

The  youth's  ear,  quivering  quick  with  jealous  love, 
Snatched  Felix's  last  words,  his  ravening  eye 
Seized  on  the  splendid  vision  of  his  bride 
Betrothed,  gleaming  there  in  her  loveliness 
Illumined  so  with  virtue  and  with  shame 
Beside  her  mother,  facing  such  a  foe  ! 
His  instinct  was  far  swifter  than  his  thought  ; 
Counting  not  odds,  not  deeming  there  was  odds, 


446  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 

He  like  an  arrow  from  a  bow  that  twanged 

Shot  into  place  between  his  bride  and  him, 

That  spoiler,  and  there  stood.      His  face  he  turned 

Defiantly  on  Felix,  lightning  of  scorn 

In  sheafs  of  flashes  shooting  from  his  eyes, 

Distended  his  fine  nostrils  with  disdain, 

His  right  arm  raised  in  gesture  to  forefend, 

And  his  light  frame  a-quiver  with  repose 

Of  purpose  to  dare  all  and  to  prevail. 

It  was  a  duel  of  silence  betwixt  those  twain, 
That   slender  youth   through  whose  translucent 

flesh 

Blushed  the  bright  blood  of  innocence  and  truth, 
That  burly  man  corrupt  in  every  vein 
With  the  thick  foecal  currents  of  debauch. 
Ruth  and  Eunice  would  not  cower  or  cry  : 
Eunice's  spirit  partook  of  that  high  strain 
Which  was  her  martyr  father's,  and  she  now 
Triumphed  to  see  transfigured  to  more  fair 
Than  ever  with  his  glorious  hardihood 
The  youth  that  worthily  bore  her  father's  name 
And  worthily  held  the  empire  of  her  heart. 
In  confidence  of  Stephen  which  subtly  too 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  447 

Wrought  to  make  him  more  confident  of  himself, 
Eunice  stood  confronting  the  event. 

Felix  succumbed  and  was  the  first  to  speak  : 
"  Well,  youngster,  thou  hast  struck  an  attitude  ! 
What  wilt  thou?     And  what  doest  thou  here? 

Knowest  not 

Thou  beardest  thus  the  lion  in  his  lair?" 
Felix's  air  of  pride  and  lordliness 
Was  ever  such  flatulent  swell  of  windy  words. 
Stephen  some  space  disdained  him  loftily 
With  dumb  and  blank  refusal  of  reply ; 
Then  grudged  him  this :  "  I  into  the  wolf's  den 
Enter  to  rend  the  ravin  from  his  paw." 
The  youth  thus  having  spoken  half-way  turned 
Toward  the  two  women  and  with  instant  voice, 
Low-toned  yet  less  to  be  inaudible 
To  Felix  than  for  intimate  passion  of  love, 
Said  :  "  Haste,  fly  !     I  will  follow  as  I  may." 

Ruth  with  Eunice  had  not  reached  the  door 
When,  frantic  to  be  balked  of  his  desire, 
Felix  lunged  after  them  with  lusty  stride 
Seeking  to  stay  the  damsel  in  her  flight. 
For  all  her  fear  she  still  forbore  to  cry, 


448  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 

But  could  not  check  her  impulse  of  appeal 
To  Stephen,  and  she  uttered  forth  his  name. 
The  eager  agile  stripling  had  no  need 
To  hear  that  call  from  his  beloved ;  he, 
Already  at  her  side,  had,  with  clenched  fist, 
Which  flashing  like  a  scimitar  came  down, 
Smitten  Felix  on  the  forearm  with  such  might 
That  for  the  moment  it  was  numbed  with  pain, 
And  dropped  as  palsied  from  its  reach  for  her. 
Eunice  with  backhanded  movement  quick 
Seized,  as  she  flew  following  her  mother  forth, 
On  Stephen's  girdle  behind  her  and  drew  him, 
Willingly  led  in  that  captivity, 
To  share  their  flight  and  rescue  from  their  foe. 

Beside  himself  with  rage  at  his  defeat, 
And  aching  still  with  pain  from  Stephen's  blow, 
Felix  now  stamped  and  shouted  :  "  Slaves  !    What, 

ho! 

Rascals,  where  are  ye  all?"     Some,  trembling,  came, 
But  ere  their  master  could  possess  his  wits 
To  give  them  orders,  Paul  before  him  stood. 
Worse  crazed  at  that  sight,  Felix  fiercely  cried  : 
"  Him  !  Him  !  Are  ye  all  blind  ?    Seize  him,  I  say  !  •< 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX.  449 

Betwixt  their  terror  of  Felix  and  their  awe 
Of  Paul,  august  in  his  unmoved  calm 
And  venerable  with  virtue  and  with  age, 
Well-known  to  them  besides  as  one  who  wrought 
With  other  power  than  mortal,  the  poor  slaves 
Hung  helpless  to  perform  their  master's  hest. 
"  These  do  not  need  to  seize  me,  here  I  am," 
Said  Paul,  "  and  of  no  mind  to  fly  ;  I  came 
Hastily  summoned  as  to  some  distress 
Here,  what  I  know  not,  that  I  might  relieve." 
"Smite  him  upon  the  mouth,"  Felix  broke  forth, 
"  And  make  him  feel  distress  to  need  relief  !  " 
The  freedman's  truculence  waxed  with  every  word, 
And  swaggering  forward  he  his  hand  upraised 
As  if  himself  to  strike  the  blow  he  bade  ; 
When,  with  a  maniple  of  soldiers  armed 
Accompanied,  Julius  the  centurion  stood 
Abruptly  at  the  door. 

Stephen  with  his  charge 
Had  met  the  band  of  soldiers  on  their  way 
Just  as,  with  circumspection  looking  back, 
He  saw  Paul,  by  a  different  path  arrived, 
And  earlier,  enter  at  Felix's  abode. 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XV. 

He  quickly  acted  on  a  counsel  new. 
For,  with  a  farewell  of,  "  Now  ye  are  safe, 
Yet  hie  ye  to  the  uttermost  remove 
From  Felix,"  to  the  women  spoken,  he 
Turning  walked  back  with  Julius  who  his  pace 
Now  slacked  to  listen  while  the  stripling  told 
What  had  befallen  and  how  he  feared  for  Paul 
Imperilled  in  that  violent  house  alone. 

"  Come  in  good  time,  however  hither  called," 
Felix  to  Julius  said,  with  such  a  tone 
As  seemed  to  ask  how  he  was  thither  called. 
"Thy  servant  Syrus  begged  that  I  would  come," 
Said  Julius,  "for  the  safety  of  thy  house 
Endangered  by  two  women  and  a  boy,  ~ 
Who  had  found  entrance  and  were  threatening  thee." 
In  truth,  that  sly  young  slave  of  Felix's  — 
For  reason  ill-affected  toward  his  lord, 
As  much  enamored  of  the  Christian  folk 
For  their  fair  manners,  and  the  comely  looks 
Of  some  of  them,  and  the  beneficent 
Working  of  wonders  seen  or  heard  from  Paul  — 
Had  summoned  Julius  in  the  true  behoof 
Of  Ruth  with  her  Eunice  and  of  Stephen  ; 


Book  XV.    YOUNG  STEPHEN  AND  FELIX. 


451 


This,  shrewdly  under  guise  of  service  shown 

His  master.     Julius  understood  the  guile 

And  humored  it,  while  Felix's  thick  wits 

Spread  ample  cover  to  render  Syrus  safe. 

"  Of  course,"  so  Julius  added,  "it  had  not  seemed 

Needful  to  come,  but  that  I  also  heard 

A  prisoner  of  my  charge  would  here  be  found, 

For  whose  safe  keeping  I  am  answerable." 

Then  glancing  in  a  kindly  neutral  way 

At  Stephen,  he,  with  show  of  grave  rebuke 

That  could  not  wholly  hide  his  lively  sense 

Of  whimsical  humor  in  the  part  he  played 

As  mediator  in  such  case,  went  on: 

"  This  Hebrew  youth  confesses  that,  in  haste 

Of  spirit,  he  offered  thee  some  disrespect." 

With  language  purposely  made  light  and  vague 

Thus  the  centurion  glozed  Stephen's  offence, 

Discreetly  shunning  to  let  Felix  know 

That  he  knew  from  the  offender's  own  report 

How,  for  good  cause,  as  to  a  happy  end, 

The  indignant  youth  inflicted  on  him  there 

The  shame  and  anguish  of  that  timely  blow. 

"What  wilt  thou,  my  lord  Felix,"  Julius  asked, 

"Wilt  thou  forgive  the  lad  outright?     Or  pleasest 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XV. 

Thou  rather  /condignly  deal  with  him?" 

It  was  astutely  so  proposed,  to  save 

Appearances  to  Felix  and/0r  him. 

Gross-witted  as  he  was,  he  yet  was  proud, 

And  such  end  of  the  incident  appeared 

At  once  some  homage  to  his  dignity 

And  an  escape  unhoped  from  threatened  shame. 

He  condescended  loftily  to  leave 

The  case  of  Stephen  in  the  centurion's  hands; 

And  the  centurion  presently  retired 

With  Paul  and  Stephen  both.     Stephen  he  bade 

See  to  it  that  he  never  thenceforth  act 

Less  worthily  of  himself  than  he  that  day 

Had  done,  and  with  no  other  reprimand 

Dismissed  him  to  rejoin  his  company. 

As  for  Drusilla,  she  now  had  her  proof ; 
And  seeing  his  purpose  prosper  Simon  was  glad. 


BOOK    XVI. 
INTERLUDE   OF   KRISHNA. 


Publius,  the  governor  of  the  island,  who  in  gratitude  to 
Paul  for  the  healing  of  his  father  has  opened  his  house  to 
the  Christians  for  their  meetings,  now  expresses,  through 
Sergius  Paulus,  his  guest,  a  wish  to  hear  himself  the  story 
that  Mary  Magdalene  is  relating.  The  company  accordingly 
assemble  in  his  house,  and  Publius  is  in  courtesy  asked  to  act 
as  a  kind  of  master  of  the  feast.  He  accepts  the  part,  and 
discharges  it  with  much  urbane  demonstrativeness.  Interrupt 
ing  Mary  at  one  point  of  her  story  with  exclamations  of  sur 
prise  and  pleasure,  he  proposes  to  Krishna  that  he  offset  what 
has  just  been  told  with  something  parallel  from  the  life  of  his 
master  Buddha.  Krishna  reluctantly  complies,  when,  after 
some  comment  following  from  Paul,  Mary  resumes  her  nar 
rative. 


INTERLUDE    OF    KRISHNA. 

For  many  following  days  in  Melita 
There  was  no  season  of  hospitality 
To  man  from  Nature  under  open  sky, 
Genial  for  ease  and  comfort  out  of  doors. 
But  the  fair  spacious  halls  of  Publius 
Stood  smiling  ever  ready  to  entertain 
Resort  of  Paul  or  any  dear  to  Paul 
Whether  for  social  worship  in  prayer  and  psalm, 
With  hearing  of  Paul  discourse  of  things  divine, 
Or  for  communion  sweet  of  friend  and  friend. 
Here  presently  were  gathered  yet  again 
The  company  that  had  with  one  accord 
Already  twice  assembled  to  give  ear 
To  Mary  Magdalene  while  she  told 
Her  story  still  unfinished  of  the  Lord. 

Publius,  as  Roman  to  his  Roman  peer  — 
And  Roman  peer  so  versed  in  all  the  arts 
And  all  the  accomplishments  urbane  that  make 
Amenity  in  companionship  —  had  said 
To  Sergius  Paulus  (likewise,  for  his  sake, 


456  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XVI. 

To  Krishna)  "  Pray  thee,  honor  thou  my  house, 
And  be  content,  abide  with  me  a  guest." 
Now  Sergius  had  to  Publius  rehearsed 
The  things  that  Mary  those  two  afternoons 
Recounted,  and  the  Roman  lord  would  fain 
Hear  from  her  lips  the  rest.     So  he  was  there — - 
Guest  in  a  sort,  while  host,  at  his  own  hearth  — 
And  Sergius  Paulus  said  : 

"O  Publius,  thou- 

Most  welcome,  as  thou  makest  us  welcome  here  — 
Shalt,  so  it  please  thee,  us  all  it  will  please, 
Be  the  feast-master  in  the  present  feast 
Of  story  and  of  audience.      Krishna  here  " 
And  courteous  toward  the  Indian  Sergius  bowed  — 
"  Has  also  a  story  to  tell  us  of  his  lord. 
Whether  with  alternation  and  relief 
Between  our  two  historians,  or  in  course, 
Till  one  have  finished,  be  the  order  best, 
Judge  thou  for  all,  and  all  will  grateful  be." 
"  Let  Mary  Magdalene  then  go  on," 
Said  Publius,  "  if  she  will,  from  where  she  ceased 
At  the  last  audience  ;  "  and  he  turned  to  her 
With,  "  Sergius  has  most  kindly  made  me  know 
So  far  thy  story,  madam,  with  the  rest 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  457 

Of  this  good  company.     But,  with  thy  peace, 
And  with  the  peace  of  Krishna  and  of  all, 
I  will  upon  occasion  interrupt  — 
For  haply  the  occasion  may  arise - 
To  ask  what  contrast  or  what  parallel 
To  this  or  that  of  Jesus,  Buddha  yields." 

So  Mary,  with  some  heightened  flush  like  shame 
To  speak  in  this  new  place  and  presence,  yet 
Sedately  like  herself  and  with  a  charm 
Already  round  her  ambient  from  the  pure, 
The  perfect,  the  accomplished  womanhood 
That  hers  was,  purged  of  self,  charm  by  all  felt 
At  once  ere  her  beginning,  thus  began  : 
"  I   think  that  I  was  saying,  as  my  words 
I  stayed  at  our  last  gathering  on  the  shore, 
How  little  like  a  tragedy  so  nigh 
It  looked  to  us,  when  we  beheld  the  throngs 
Strewing  Christ's  way  before  him  with  their  robes 
Flung  down,  and  with  green  branches  of  the  palm, 
And  shouting  their  hosannas  to  His  name. 
But  Jesus  was  not  blinded  as  were  we ! 
He,  on  the  brink  of  the  descent  arrived 
Steep  from  the  Mount  of  Olives  leading  down, 


458 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 


Beheld  the  holy  city  with  its  sheen 

Of  splendor  from  the  temple  roofs  and  walls, 

And,  far  removed  from  glorying  at  the  sight 

As  king  might  welcomed  to  his  capital, 

Wept  over  it,  with  much-amazing  tears, 

And  cried  :  '  Hadst  thou  but  known,  but  known, 

even  thou, 

Yea,  even  in  this  thy  day  but  known  the  things 
That  to  thy  peace  belong  !     But  they  are  hid 
Now  from  thine  eyes.      For  days  will  come  on 

thee  — ' 

And  then  such  dreadful  days  he  told  us  of  — 
Days  which  our  holy  apostles  think  are  nigh, 
Whence  their  l  Maranatha ! '  so  often  heard, 
Reminder  watchword  of  the  Lord  at  hand, 
They  solemnly  adjuring  by  the  days 
Reserved  for  our  Jerusalem,  a  wrath 
To  come  upon  her  to  the  uttermost 
Then  when  He,  with  the  angels  of  His  power, 
And  as  the  lightning  shineth  suddenly 
Ablaze  from  one  end  to  the  other  of  heaven, 
Shall  back  return  in  clouds  to  execute 
His  judgment  on  the  city  that  slew  Him  !  " 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  459 

"  But  wherefore,"  the  centurion  asked  once  more, 
And  Mary  with  a  loyal  look  toward  him 
Of  honor  for  his  kindly  courtesy 
That  day  and  ever  bountiful  to  them- 
Look  too  betokening  welcome  of  his  return 
To  share  the  audience  of  her  tale  again 
Late  interrupted  by  that  message  brought 
Seeming  to  be  of  sinister  import  — 
Mary,  with  such  a  meaning  so  conveyed, 
Paused,  while  the  friendly  Roman  plied  his  quest : 
"But  wherefore  did  Jerusalem  desire 
To  slay  one  innocent  of  crime  like  him? 
Some  reason  of  state  I  dared  to  guess  there  was, 
But  what  the  reason  of  state,  thou  didst  not  tell," 
Turning  to  Paul  he  said,  and  Paul  replied: 
"  The  Jewish  rulers  of  the  people  said  : 
'This  Jesus,  if  we  let  him  thus  alone, 
Will  draw  all  men  to  follow  after  him  ; 
The  Romans  then  will  come  and  take  away 
Alike  this  city  which  belongs  to  us, 
Yea,  and  the  nation  over  which  we  rule.' 
The  rescued  remnant  of  authority 
Wielded  by  the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees 
Over  our  nation  under  Roman  sway, 


460  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI, 

This  still  was  dear  to  them  and  this  they  feared 
To  forfeit  if  the  fame  of  Jesus  grew." 

"  And  grow  it  did  surpassing  even  their  fears," 
Mary  resumed,  at  silent  sign  from  Paul ; 
"  For  but  a  little  while  before,  and  nigh 
Jerusalem,  a  height  of  miracle 

Jesus  had  wrought.      One  four  days  dead,  nay,  one 
Already  four  days  in  his  sepulcher, 
Our  Lord,  with  only  '  Lazarus,  come  forth  !  ' — 
Commanded  in  loud  voice  before  the  tomb- 
Summoned  to  life  again.     The  dead  came  forth 
Bound  hand  and  foot  with  grave-clothes,  and  his 

head 

Bound  with  a  napkin  round  about  —  no  pause, 
Not  of  an  instant,  in  obeying  that  word, 
Prevention  none  felt  from  impediment. 
Abrupt  descent  then  from  such  miracle 
To  the  plain  level  of  sobering  commonplace, 
For  he  whom  Jesus  from  the  dead  could  call 
To  leave  his  tomb,  to  stand  upright,  to  walk, 
Unconscious  of  obstruction,  swathed  about 
With  grave-clothes  though  he  was,  must  be  released 
By  others  from  his  bonds;  the  Master  said 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  461 

To  those  near  by,  '  Loose  him  and  let  him  go.'  ' 

While  Mary  told  these  things,  a  sense  diffused 
Of  something  felt  by  all  the  Christians  there, 
Felt,  but  acknowledged  not  in  word  or  sign, 
Signalled  itself  despite  to  all  the  rest ; 
And  through  a  kind  of  dumb  intelligence 
It  came  that  Publius,  Julius,  and  that  deep 
Discerning  Indian,  Krishna,  with  one  mind 
To  all,  unspoken,  fixed  inquiring  gaze 
On  Rachel  and  on  Stephen,  who  their  hands 
Meantime  had  silently,  unconsciously, 
With  simultaneous  mutual  movement  clasped, 
As  if  in  token  of  some  memory 
Which  they  that  moment  felt  between  them  rise, 
Some  sacred  memory,  some  undying  love. 
Then  Mary,  with  the  happy  instinct  hers 
Of  what  was  fitting  to  be  said,  and  when, 
And  what  more  fitting  to  be  left  unsaid, 
And  how  to  say  all,  or  how  silent  be, 
Assuming,  with  a  look  of  deference 
First  toward  the  twain,  their  present  leave  to 

speak  — 
Granted  to  her  as  so  much  trusted  in 


462 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 


For  wisdom,  and  for  love  in  wisdom  poised  — 

Said,  with  a  certain  courtesy  implied 

For  Publius  as  the  master  of  the  feast, 

And  for  the  others  needing  to  be  told  : 

''That  Lazarus,  raised  by  Jesus  from  the  dead, 

Is  to  the  Christians  of  this  company 

A  name  the  dearer  that  to  two  of  us 

He  is  the  dearest  memory  of  their  lives. 

For  after  he  had  risen  from  the  dead 

At  Jesus'  call  he  lived  his  human  life 

As  he  before  had  done,  till  in  due  time 

A  husband  and  a  father  he  became. 

But  Rachel  lives  in  honored  widowhood, 

As,  with  her,  half  in  orphanhood  lives  Stephen, 

Because  he  after  fell  asleep  in  Christ 

To  be  waked  only  when  Christ  comes  again.'* 

A  tender  pause  succeeded,  which  all  filled 
With  solemn,  some  with  wondering,  thought  ;  and 

then, 

Tempered,  beyond  his  will  or  consciousness, 
To  a  contagious  mood  of  sympathy, 
Publius  most  gently  a's  feast-master  spoke : 
"  The  height  of  miracle  well  calledst  thou 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  46 

Such  summoning  of  the  dead  to  life  again ; 

For  greater  wonder  were  not  possible. 

To  see  it,  as  thou  sawest  it,  was  a  gift 

Indeed  from  the  supernal  powers ;  next  is, 

To  have  it  in  report  of  one  who  saw  it; 

And  then,  for  attestation  of  thy  word, 

Where  attestation  surely  need  was  none 

Yet  serving  for  attestation,  to  behold 

Here  those  who  knew  the  dead  man  raised  to  life 

As  husband  and  as  father — all  makes  seem 

The  story  like  reality  itself. 

"And  now,"  to  Krishna  turning,  Publius  said: 
11  O  Krishna,  pray  from  thee  a  parallel. 
What  comparable  wonder  wilt  thou  show 
That  thou  hast  seen  thy  master  Buddha  work?" 

The  countenance  fell  to  Krishna  hearing  this, 
But  quickly  himself  recovering  he  replied 
"  I  am  not  able  out  of  all  I  know 
Concerning  Buddha  aught  this  day  to  tell 
As  one  that  saw  and  heard  ;  I  never  saw, 
I  never  heard,  lord  Buddha  act  or  speak." 
"Then  from  report  that  some  eye-witness  gave 
Thee,  speak  and  tell  us  what  thou  wilt,  and  we 


464  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

Will  be  therewith  content"    -so  Publius,  dashed 

A  little  from  his  lively  hope,  but  fain 

To  ease  the  discomposure  of  his  guest. 

But  Krishna,  in  no  wise  more  cheerful,  said  : 

"  Nor  from  eye-witness  have  I  aught  received 

That  my  lord  Buddha  either  said  or  did  : 

He  lived  and  passed  five  hundred  years  ago." 

"  But  doubtless  some  memorials,"  Publius  said, 
"Were  written  by  eye-witnesses  of  him, 
While  he  still  lived,  or  close  upon  his  death, 
To  keep  so  dear  a  memory  alive 
And  certify  it  to  all  aftertime. 
So,  out  of  such  memorials  known  to  thee, 
Fresh  still,  though  old  five  hundred  years,  because 
Then  written  when  the  images  were  fresh, 
Imprinted  on  the  writer's  mind  of  things 
He  either  saw  or  heard  himself  from  Buddha — 
Strange  virtue  has  eye-witness  testimony 
In  simultaneous  records  of  the  time 
To  stay,  though  old,  perennially  young  — 
I  say,  then,  out  of  such  memorials  stored 
And  treasured  up  in  mind  to  thee  speak  thou, 
And  it  shall  be  to  us  as  if  thou  hadst  seen." 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  465 

Publius,  with  all  sincerity  of  aim 
To  hearten  Krishna  and  make  most  the  worth 
Of  that  which  he,  although  eye-witness  not, 
Nor  yet  reporter  from  eye-witness  known, 
Should  proffer  to  that  hospitality 
Of  audience  touching  his  dear  master  Buddh, 
Had  unawares  confused  him  more  and  more. 
For  the  first  time  the  Indian  felt  give  way 
A  little,  melting  underneath  his  feet, 
His  standing-ground  of  settled  certitude  : 
'  Was  it  all  quicksand  ?     Nothing  there  of  rock  ?' 
But  he  made  answer :  "  O  my  courteous  host, 
All  is  uncertain,  for  tradition  all, 
Concerning  times,  and  order  of  events. 
Indeed,  we  Indians  care  not  for  these  things, 
But  trust  full  easily,  or,  not  trusting,  yet 
Rest  as  if  trusting,  in  much  unconcern 
Whether  that  which  we  learn  be  wholly  true, 
Or  partly  not ;  and  yet  I  have  heard  it  said 
That,  close  upon  the  passing  of  the  Buddh, 
A  council  of  five  hundred  faithful  met 
Who  said  together  in  accord  complete  - 
No  sentence  varying,  nay,  no  syllable - 
The  mighty  mass  of  all  the  Exalted  One's 


466  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

Instructions;  but  no  writing  then  was  made, 

Nor  again  afterward  an  hundred  years, 

When  such  rehearsal  came  a  second  time. 

So,  truth  to  say,  where  all  is  doubt  —  for  me, 

I  fear  there  was,  for  half  five  hundred  years 

After  he  died,  no  record  in  writing  made 

Of  what  our  master  Buddha  wrought  and  taught. 

Save  for  those  synods  of  rehearsal  met, 

That  precious  memory  lived  precariously, 

As  himself  lived,  the  master,  vagabond 

And  mendicant  from  loyal  mouth  to  mouth. 

But  such  tradition  was  too  vital  to  die ; 

Compact  of  only  vocal  breath,  it  still 

Persisted  and  would  still  for  aye  persist 

Though  never  at  all  in  written  record  sheathed. 

"  But  the  fourth  part  of  a  millennium 
After  lord  Buddha  died,  a  synod  sat 
Of  his  discreet  disciples,  who  decreed 
That  then  at  least  a  record  should  be  framed 
In  writing  of  the  master's  deeds  and  words." 

"  Most  fit,"  said  Publius,  who  to  complaisance, 
His  impulse  and  his  habit,  now  adjoined 
A  certain  willingness  not  unamiable 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  467 

To  magnify  the  twofold  part  he  played 
As  host  and  as  symposiarch,  and  make  cheer 
All  that  he  could  for  Krishna  ;  "  aye,  most  fit ; 
And  doubtless  they  were  men,  that  synod,  famed 
For  wisdom  and  for  virtue  ;  name  them  thou, 
Or  at  least  some,  the  chief,  that  we  may  here 
Honor  them  for  their  worth." 

But  Krishna  said 

(For,  by  some  sense  of  disadvantage  stung, 
He  took  reprisals  of  his  gentle  sort): 
"  What  if  I  could  not  name  them  ?     What  if  they, 
Concerned  less  to  survive  themselves  in  fame, 
Mere  empty  wraiths  of  sound  to  mortal  ears 
In  futile  issues  of  dissolving  breath, 
Repeated  echoes  of  unmeaning  names  — 
What  if,  I  say,  concerned  less  so  to  be 
Vainly  themselves  remembered  for  a  day 
Than  to  keep  living  for  the  use  of  men 
The  saving  truths  their  master  Buddha  taught, 
Those  saints  and  sages  of  the  elder  time 
Let  themselves  perish  quite  from  human  thought?" 

But  Publius  interposed,  insisting,  fain 
To  show  some  ground  of  reason  in  his  mind, 


468  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

Beyond  mere  curiosity  for  words, 

Why  he  desired  to  know  those  ancient  names. 

"  Yet  were  it  some  support  "  he  said,  "  to  faith 

In  those  same  saving  truths  as  truly  saved 

Themselves  for  men,  after  so  long  a  term 

Of  vagabondage  (to  take  up  thy  word), 

Of  vagabondage  and  of  mendicancy  — 

The  fourth  part  of  a  thousand  years  consumed 

In  flying  forward  hither  from  mouth  to  mouth — " 

So  far,  uncertain  of  his  way,  he  groped  ; 

Bethinking  then  himself  of  one  more  chance, 

That  might  be,  of  the  proof  he  sought,  he  said  : 

"And  still,  O  Krishna,  if  those  nameless  ones, 

Deserving  well  to  be  not  nameless,  nay, 

Of  far-renowned  name  ;  nor  less,  but  more, 

Deserving  that  they  waived  their  own  desert ; 

If  these  —  nobly  not  mindful  whether  they 

Remembered  or  forgotten  were  of  men, 

Yet  heedful  not  to  let  the  coming  time 

Fail  of  the  truth  that  they  themselves  had  found 

So  dear,  or  dwell  in  any  needless  doubt 

Of  its  just  phrase  —  committed  at  the  last 

The  task  of  fixing  it  in  written  form 

To  some  illustrious  man  who  would  consent 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  469 

To  forego  for  himself  his  choice  of  being 
Obscure,  unknown  to  aftertime,  and  lend 
The  great  weight  of  his  name  to  the  result, 
For  satisfaction  to  inquiring  souls  — 
Why,  that  were  much,  indeed  perhaps  enough, 
And  I  before  required  beyond  my  right." 

Demand  upon  demand  sincerely  so 
Urged  by  the  genial  host  upon  his  guest 
As  if  urbane  concessions  granted  him, 
Involved  the  patient  Indian  more  and  more. 
Pressed  beyond  even  his  measure  now  at  length, 
He  brooked  no  longer  to  allow  the  toils 
To  multiply  about  him  which  he  felt 
Were  fast  entangling  him  to  helplessness. 
He  boldly  spoke  to  disengage  himself: 
"  We  of  the  East,  O  Publius,  are  not  such 
As  you  are  of  the  West.     We  do  not  count 
The  years  as  you  do,  fixing  fast  our  dates. 
We  live  content  a  kind  of  timeless  life 
That  moves  continuous  on  from  age  to  age 
Unreckoned.     Countless  generations  come 
And  go,  and  come  and  go,  like  forest  leaves 
From  year  to  year,  and  no  one  takes  account 


470 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 


Of  those  more  than  of  these.     Why  should  we? 

Those, 

As  these,  are  ever  to  each  other  like, 
Harvest  and  harvest  endlessly  the  same. 
What  profit  were  there  in  a  history, 
What  history  indeed  were  possible, 
Of  either  leaves  or  men  ?     Let  leaves  and  men 
Together  to  oblivion  go  ;  be  sure 
There  will  not  fail  to  follow  leaves  and  men 
To  fill  the  places  never  vacant  left. 

"  But  then  we  Easterns  are  yet  otherwise 
Different  from  you  ;  for  we  remember  more. 
Because  we  do  not  write  our  records  down, 
We  all  the  better  keep  them  safe  in  mind. 
Doubtless  we  mix  them  much  with  fantasy : 
We  are  not  nice  to  draw  a  certain  line 
Between  what  we  remember  and  what  dream. 
All  is  as  dream  to  us,  for  we  ourselves 
Are  dream,  and  oft  imagination  wakes 
Where  memory  sleeps  ;  but,  so  the  form  be  full, 
Somehow,  somewhence,  it  matters  naught  to  us 
Whether  from  fact  it  be,  remembered  right, 
Or  half  from  fancy  fitted  to  the  fact. 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  47! 

Our  Buddha  is  the  fair  ideal  man, 
Exemplar  of  the  human  possible. 
We  cannot  dream  him  fairer  than  he  is, 
Or  was  —  for  he  perhaps  is  not  —  and  so 
We  fling  the  rein  down  on  our  fancy's  neck 
And  let  her  freely  take  her  own  wise  way. 

"  I  will  not  warrant  you  the  truth  of  it, 
That  is,  the  insignificant  truth  of  fact, 
Mere  fact,  but  if  the  deeper  truth  of  fit 
And  fair  will  answer  you,  I  can  relate 
The  story  of  one  miracle  of  Buddh, 
The  sole  one  of  the  Sutta  Pitaka, 
That  chiefest  treasure  of  our  sacred  texts. 
This,  though  to  raising  of  the  dead  no  match, 
Yet,  to  my  mind,  is  meet  and  memorable, 
For  that  therewith  a  lovely  word  is  joined 
Of  tuneful  teaching  from  the  master's  lips." 

"  Let  us  have  both,  the  wonder  and  the  word," 
Said  Publius,  and  the  Indian  thus  complied  : 
"  '  The  Blessed  to  the  sacred  Ganges  came 
'  And  found  the  stream  an  overflowing  flood. 
'  The  others  looked  for  boats  and  rafts  to  cross, 
'  Or  else  wove  wicker  into  basket  floats ; 


472  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

'  But  he,  as  quickly  as  a  strong  man  forth 
'  Would  stretch  his  arm,   or  his  arm  being 

stretched 

1  Would  bring  it  back,  so  quickly  at  his  wish, 
'  Had  changed  the  hither  for  the  thither  side. 
'  There  standing,  he  the  wicker-weavers  saw, 
'  And  thus  broke  forth  in  parable  and  song  : 
'  "  They  who  traverse  the  ocean  of  desire, 
' "  Building  themselves  a  causeway  firm  and  good 
"  Across  the   quaking   quagmires,   quicksands, 

pools, 

'"Of  ignorance,  of  delusion,  and  of  lust, 
'"Whilst   the   vain  world    its   wicker    baskets 

weaves  - 

'"These  are  the  wise,  and  these  the  saved  in 
deed.'  " 

A  pang  of  suffering  love  and  loving  ruth, 
For  Buddha  himself,  long  quit  of  earthly  strife, 
But  more  for  Buddha's  disciple  present  there, 
Shot  through  the  heart  of  Paul  hearing  these  things. 
He  sighed  in  spirit  heavily,  but  said, 
When  Publius  seemed  to  seek  a  word  from  him : 
"  If  I  have  taken  the  Buddha's  sense  aright, 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  473 

He  means  that  they  the  happy  are  and  wise 

Who  find  a  means  of  ceasing  from  desire 

And  entering  into  passionless  repose, 

A  state  from  death  itself  scarce  different. 

Contrariwise  taught  Jesus:  '  Blessed  they 

That  hunger  and  that  thirst ; '  that  fan  desire 

To  all-consuming  flame  of  appetite  — 

But  it  must  be  for  righteousness  they  pant. 

Not  from  desire,  but  from  impure  desire, 

To  cease  —  that  is  salvation  ;  and  we  best 

Cease  from  impure  desire  when  we  to  flame 

The  whitest  fan  desire  for  all  things  true, 

For  all  things  honorable,  and  all  things  just, 

For  all  things  pure,  and  all  things  lovely,  all 

Of  good  report,  and  worthy  human  praise. 

Passion  for  these  things,  being  pure  passion,  burns 

The  impure  passion  out  :  but  passion  such 

Is  kindled  only  at  the  altar  fire 

Of  the  eternal  God's  white  holiness. 

"  No  God  find  I  in  all  the  Buddha's  thought - 
A  ghastly  gap  of  void  and  nothingness, 
O  Krishna,  to  the  orphaned  human  heart 
That  aches  with  longing  and  with  loneliness, 


474  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XVI, 

A  weanling  infant  left  forlorn  of  God, 

And,  '  O,  that  I  might  find  Him  ! '  ceaseless  cries 

In  yearnings  that  will  not  be  pacified, 

Fatherless  in  a  dreadful  universe  ! 

I  would  thy  Buddha  had  felt  after  God, 

And  haply  found  Him,  or  been  found  of  Him  ! 

I  wonder  if,  not  knowing  it,  he  did ! 

Sadly  I  wonder  when  of  this  I  think, 

That  he  who  comes  to  God  must  needs  believe 

God  is,  and  a  rewarder  is  of  such 

As  diligently  seek  Him  —  such  alone. 

But  may  one  seek  God  unawares  ?     With  hope 

I  wonder,  when  I  think  again  of  Him, 

The  Light  that  lighteth  every  soul  of  man 

That  anywhere  is  born  into  the  world. 

O  Christ,  Thou  Brightness  of  the  Father's  glory, 

Immanuel,  God  with  us,  the  Son  of  Man, 

The  Son  of  God,  God  Himself  manifest 

On  earth  to  us,  Redeemer,  Brother,  Lord  !" 

The  strain  of  such  ascription  bursting  forth 
Unbidden,  and  unboundedly  intense 
In  tone,  from  the  great  heart  of  Paul  surcharged 
With  passion  of  devotion  to  his  Lord 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  475 

And  with  vicarious  travailing  desire 
To  save  men,  wrought  in  all  who  heard  an  awe 
Of  immanent  God.      But  Krishna  to  the  quick 
Was  touched  with  tenderness  toward  Paul  to  hear 
Paul's  tenderness  toward  Buddha,  far  removed 
Although  it  were  from  reverence  like  his  own. 

To  Publius  there  seemed  no  fitting  thing 
For  modulation  to  the  mood  from  Paul, 
Save  to  let  Mary  now  resume  the  word. 
She  said  :  "  After  the  raising  from  the  dead 
Of  Lazarus,  we  disciples  of  the  Lord 
Ought  not  to  have  been  astonished  or  dismayed 
At  anything  that  in  His  wisdom  He, 
His  wisdom  and  His  power,  might  either  do 
Or  suffer  to  be  done.     But  we  were  blind, 
And  it  did  seem  to  us  so  violent, 
So  opposite  to  all  that  should  have  been, 
When  He,  that  Lord  of  life  and  glory,  let 
The  soldiers  take  him  prisoner.     At  first 
Indeed,  when  He  stood  forth  and  said  to  them, 
1  Whom  seek  ye?'  and  they,  ignorant,  said  to  Him, 
'Jesus  of  Nazareth,'  and  thereupon 
He  answered,  '  I  am  he,'  they,  at  that  word 


476  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XVI. 

From  Him,  majestically  spoken  more 
Than  they  could  bear  to  hear  and  stand  upright, 
Went  backward  and  fell  prostrate  on  the  ground. 
This,  as  I  think,  was  not  so  much  against 
Those  who  thus  suffered  as  for  us  who  saw  — 
To  reassure  our  faith  that  naught  then  done 
Was  done  without  His  sovereign  sufferance,  who 
Such  things  could,  then  even,  and  so  easily,  work. 

"  But  I  have  told  now  what  I  did  not  see, 
For  it  was  midnight  when  this  came  to  pass  — 
Deep  in  the  garden  of  Gethsemane, 
A  little  paradise  of  olive  trees 
Where  oft  the  Master  loved  to  be  retired  ; 
A  few  disciples  only  were  with  Him  there, 
His  chosen  apostles;  and  not  all  of  these, 
For  one  of  them  a  little  while  before 
Had  gone  out  from  among  them  —  well  foreknown 
By  Jesus  wherefore,  it  was  to  betray 
His  Lord  and  Master  to  His  enemies! 
Judas,  the  name  of  this  one  was,  and  he 
Had  given  it  for  a  sign  to  those  that  sought 
To  lay  hands  on  our  Master,  '  Whomsoever 
I  kiss,  that  same  is  He;  make  sure  of  Him.' 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  477 

So  Judas,  as  in  all  sweet  loyalty, 

Came  up  to  Jesus  with  his  proffered  kiss 

Of  salutation  ;  but  the  Lord  would  not 

Receive  it,  till  He  had  first  made  known  to  all 

His  understanding  of  its  treachery  : 

'Judas/  He  said,  'betrayest  thou  with  a  kiss 

The  Son  of  Man  ?'     When  Judas  had  his  sign 

Given,  he  fell  back  among  the  band  he  had  brought. 

Then  was  it  that  the  Lord  asked  them,  not  yet 

Enough  assured  or  haply  stunned  with  fear, 

'  Whom  seek  ye  ? '  and  declared  Himself  to  them. 

So  Judas  was  of  those  who  prostrate  fell 

Recoiled  before  the  glory  of  the  Lord 

Flashing  in  sudden  glimpse  from  out  the  shame 

Like  lightning  disimprisoned  from  a  cloud - 

Foretasted  retribution  of  his  crime ! 

Thus  much  not  as  eye-witness  I  relate, 

But  having  heard  it  from  eye-witnesses 

So  many  and  so  close  upon  the  time 

That  half  it  seems  as  if  myself  had  seen  it. 

"  I  saw  when,  with  the  breaking  of  the  dawn, 
After  a  night  to  Jesus  of  such  strain 
And  pain  in  agony  and  bloody  sweat, 


478  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

And  sorrow  of  heart  for  human  traitorhood, 

And  disappointment  in  his  hopes  from  friends, 

And  dreadful  bodings  of  the  doom  so  nigh, 

And  being  rudely  hustled  to  and  fro 

Between  one  jurisdiction  and  another, 

Everywhere  treated  with  all  contumely 

Both  of  accusing  and  reviling  word 

And  of  gross  act  in  blasphemous  affront 

To  the  image  of  God  in  man  —  were  He  but  man  !  — 

But  He  being  God,  conceive  the  blasphemy 

Of  spitting  in  that  heavenly  human  face 

Divine,  and  smiting  Him  in  mockery, 

Blindfolded  not  to  see  whence  came  the  blow, 

Then  bidden  prophesy,  'Who  struck  thee,  Christ?' 

(The  very  slaves  there  smote  Him  with  their  hands) — 

I  say  that  after  such  a  night  to  Him 

Who  condescended  to  be  human,  God 

Although  He  was,  and  felt  all  human  woe, 

I  saw  when,  morning  having  broken,  they 

Led  Jesus  last  to  Pilate  in  his  hall. 

There  He  stood  lamblike,  so  pathetical 

In  His  meek  majesty  I  could  have  wept 

For  heart-break  in  sheer  pity  of  His  state, 

But  that  the  fountain  was  dried  up  in  me 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  479 

Of  blessed  tears,  and  I  consumed  myself 
In  anguish  that  fed  on  my  soul  like  fire." 

The  anguish  whereof  Mary  spoke  that  fed 
So  like  an  inward  fire  upon  her  soul, 
Seemed  to  surge  back  on  her  in  memory  ; 
And  it  was  after  strong  recoil  subdued 
That  she  resumed  to  say  :  "  Ye  will  not  ask 
That  I  tell  all  again,  how  shame  on  shame 
Was  wreaked  upon  my  Lord,  until  no  more 
Was  possible  from  men.     Pilate  himself 
(Now  Pilate  was  the  Roman  governor) 
Pilate  himself,  I  think,  was  moved  to  pity, 
Though,  paltering,  he  with  cruel  weakness  bade 
Scourge  that  sweet  human  flesh  and  temple  of  God  ! 
Perhaps  he  thought,  'This  will  content  his  foes.' 
So  having  done,  he,  issuing  from  his  hall, 
Brought  Jesus  forth  before  the  multitude 
Wearing  upon  His  brow  a  crown  of  thorns 
The  soldiers  had  in  mocking  plaited  Him, 
And  over  his  bruised  form  the  purple  robe. 
'  Behold  the  man  ! '  said  Pilate  to  the  Jews  ; 
I  think  he  must  have  had  his  hope  to  meet 
Relenting  on  the  part  of  that  wild  mob 


480  THE  EPIC  OE  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

When  they  saw  Jesus  in  His  piteous  plight. 
Bloodthirsty  as  they  were,  perhaps  they  would, 
With  the  blood  streaming-  from  His  wounded  brows, 
They  knowing  besides  how  underneath  the  robe 
Mock-kingly  that  he  wore  the  blood  coursed  down 
The  trenches  opened  by  the  cutting  lash  — 
With  so  much  blood  they  might  be  satisfied. 
Nay,  so  much  blood  but  maddened  them  for  more. 

"  '  Behold  the  man  ! '  said  Pilate,  and  I  looked. 
I  knew  that  He  was  more  than  man,  and  never 
Did  He  the  human  measure  more  surpass, 
Yet  man  He  was,  and  so  divinely  man  ! 
The  God  in  Him,  apparent  like  the  sun 
To  me,  made  Him  not  less,  more  rather,  man. 
I  worshipped  Him,  and  yet  I  pitied  Him  ! 
I  never  pitied  other  half  so  much. 

"  He  was  so  exquisitely  human  !     Our     ' 
Little  capacity  of  suffering  pain, 
Whether  of  spirit  or  of  flesh,  in  Him 
Seemed  to  be  carried  to  unmeasured  heights. 
What  form  of  anguish  ours  did  He  not  feel? 
Yea,  sorrow  for  sin  not  His;  'Which  one  of  you,' 
He  asked  once,  and  no  hearer  made  reply, 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  481 

'  Which  one  of  you  convinceth  Me  of  sin  ?' 

Sinless  He  was,  nor  ever  felt  remorse, 

That  worm  which  clieth  not   prey  on  His  soul. 

Yet  somehow  He  became  so  one  with  us 

He  felt  our  sin  as  if  it  were  His  own, 

His  own  to  bear  in  undeserved  woe 

Suffered  on  our  behalf,  worse  than  remorse. 

All  this  I  blindly  felt  seeing  Him  there. 

He  did  not  mail  Him  proof  with  hero  pride 

To  suffer  as  if  He  suffered  not,  and  so 

Wrest  their  vain  triumph  from  His  enemies. 

They  saw  Him  suffer  more  than  any  man, 

Not  quailing  indeed,  yet  hardening  not  Himself. 

'  Never  man  spake  like  this  man,'  some  one  said  ; 

I  say,  suffered  man  never  so  as  He. 

How  my  heart  bled  for  Him  when  Pilate  spoke 

Those  words,    '  Behold    the  man  ! '     And   Pilate 

too, 

I  pitied  him.      Pity,  with  worship  blent 
Into  one  overmastering  passion,  poured 
Out  of  my  heart  toward  Jesus  ;  but  toward  him, 
Pilate,  that  weak,  that  wicked,  went  instead 
Pity  with  horror,  doubtful  which  was  more. 
Forgive  me  that  I  mix  myself  with  this. 


482  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVI. 

Indeed  I  could  not  tell  you  all  in  all 
My  story,  not  another's,  of  the  Lord, 
Unless,  besides  the  things  I  saw  or  heard, 
I  told  you  also  how  they  seemed  to  me, 
What    thoughts,   what    feelings    started    in    my 
breast." 

The  purged    high   passion   with   which    Mary 

spoke, 

Calm  though  she  kept  with  costly  self-command, 
Betrayed  itself  to  Paul  observing  her. 
He  knew  the  tension  of  remembered  pain, 
Imagined  with  such  vividness  of  recall 
That  well-nigh  Mary  suffered  it  all  afresh, 
Had  touched  already  the  extremest  bound 
Of  what  that  spirit,  in  its  shaken  shrine 
Of  frail  flesh  quivering  so,  could  safely  bear. 
He  spoke  and  said  :  "  O  Publius,  there  is  much 
Remaining  still  for  Mary  to  recite 
Of  the  last  things  to  Jesus  here  on  earth, 
Both  His  obedience  faithful  unto  death, 
And  His  victorious  rising  from  the  grave. 
So  thou,  feast-master  of  the  hour,  consent, 
Let  us — thine  own  urbane  feast-mastership 


Book  XVI.      INTERLUDE  OF  KRISHNA.  48; 

Resumed  then  —  meet,  if  God  will,  yet  once  more 
To  hear  this  solemn  history  to  the  end." 

Such  word  from  Paul  was  mastership  transferred 
To  him  ;  and  Publius  promptly,  without  sense 
Of  yielding,  yielded  and  broke  up  the  feast. 


BOOK     XVII. 
THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS. 


When  the  company  next  assemble,  Publius  greets  them 
with  a  feast  spread  in  his  house.  This  gives  occasion  for  his 
explaining  the  customs  of  his  nation  in  the  matter  of  recog 
nizing  various  divinities  at  feasts.  Paul  replies,  setting  forth 
the  Christian  doctrine  on  this  point.  Mary,  in  due  time  about 
to  begin  her  narrative,  is  seized  with  asudden  faintness,  which 
however  soon  yielding  to  restoratives  supplied  by  Ruth,  she 
goes  on  and  relates  the  incidents  of  the  crucifixion  of  Jesus. 


THE  STORY  OF    THE   CROSS. 

"'  Feast-master,'  ye  were  pleased  to  call  me, 

friends:" 

So  in  a  cheerful  humor  Ptiblius  spoke, 
Bright-hearted  welcome  radiant  on  his  face 
As  vibrant  in  his  brisk  and  cordial  tones, 
Then  when  by  concert  after  interval  - 
Their  appetite  the  keener  from  suspense  — 
The  selfsame  company  again  were  met 
Under  his  ample  roof  to  hear  the  rest 
What  Mary,  or  what  Krishna,  more  might  tell. 

They  found  the  mansion  furnished  as  for  feast. 
Garlands  of  fresh  leaf  and  of  fragrant  flower 
Hung  everywhere  about  and  frolic  laughed 
'  A  momentary  mimicry  of  spring. 
A  fountain  playing  in  the  court  without 
Shot  up  its  curving  column  to  the  sun  ; 
He  caught  the  shattered  capital  in  air, 
And,  kindling  every  crystal  water-drop 
Of  all  the  circling  shower  to  which  it  turned 
Into  a  jewel,  sent  the  largess  down, 


4"88  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 

Shifting  as  in  a  shaken  kaleidoscope 
From  form  to  form  of  light  and  rainbow  hue  — 
A  glittering  evanescence  passing  price, 
Sard,  topaz,  sapphire,  opal,  diamond-stone, 
Emerald  and  ruby,  pearl  and  amethyst. 
That  fountain,  to  the  eye  refection  such, 
Plashed  gentle-murmuring  music  in  the  ear. 
Couches  and  chairs  about  the  board  disposed 
Awaited.     The  guests'  feet,  as  they  reclined, 
Or  sat  —  the  woman  sat,  the  men  reclined - 
Were  duly  washed  and  wiped  after  the  wont 
Of  homage  in  those  times  and  in  those  climes 
Accorded  ever  to  the  honored  guest. 

While  this  was  passing,  the  complacent  host, 
Not  in  quite  unpremeditated  words 
Though  from  his  heart,  welcomed  his  guests  and 

said : 

"  '  Feast-master '  ye  were  pleased  to  call  me  late 
When  of  your  own  ye  furnished  forth  the  feast, 
Invisible  viands,  yet  of  savor  rare. 
Then  I  was  helpless,  taken  by  surprise, 
And  could  do  nothing  to  deserve  my  name. 
If,  by  your  grace,  I  must  feast-master  be, 


Book  XVII.   THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS. 


489 


Let  me  in  some  sort  be  feast-maker  too. 

Forewarned  to-day,  I  venture  to  assume 

Leave  of  your  goodness,  and  provide  this  cheer; 

Too  obvious  to  the  sight  and  touch  and  taste 

To  be  as  delicate  as  yours,  yet  fruit 

Of  hospitality  sincere.      Partake, 

I  pray  you,  freely,  and  commend  the  food. 

With  meat  and  drink  refreshed,  we  shall  not  less, 

More  rather,  relish  what  of  nobler  sort 

May  follow,  entertainment  to  the  mind." 

Paul  answering  with  a  grave  sweet  courtesy 
For  all  attuned  that  genial  atmosphere 
To  a  chaste  spirit  of  something  finer  yet 
Than  genial,  which  prepared  him  easy  way 
To  saying:  "  And  now,  O  Publius,  unto  God 
Most  High,  who  gave  thee  what  thou  givest  us, 
And  gave  thee  likewise  thy  good  will  to  give, 
That  God  in  whom  we  live  and  move  and  have 
Our  being,  who  of  one  blood  made  us  all, 
Gentile  and  Jew  together,  and  whose  Son 
Christ  Jesus  died  that  we  might  be  redeemed 
To  fellow-sonship  with  Himself  to  God  — 
Let  us  to  God,  All-giver,  render  thanks 


490  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 

For  these  his  gifts,  and  therewithal  for  that, 
His  gift  unspeakable  in  Christ  His  Son." 
So,  Publius  assenting  with  bowed  head 
And  complaisance  unspoken,  Paul  gave  thanks. 

"  Oblation  of  the  lips  in  chosen  words, 
Warm  from  the  heart  no  doubt  yet  only  words, 
O  Paul,  thou  offeredst  to  the  powers  unseen 
Above  us,"  Publius  said  soon  after  while 
The  equal  feast  they  shared  ;  "as  if  one  God 
Alone  thou  worshippedst,  All-giver  named 
By  thee  :  but  we  have  gods  and  goddesses 
Diverse  in  name  and  office,  unto  whom 
We  offer  gift  and  sacrifice  diverse 
According  as  may  seem  diversely  meet. 
Apollo  is  the  regent  of  the  sun, 
Of  the  moon,  Cynthia  with  her  crescent  bow ; 
Pomona  is  our  patroness  of  fruits, 
While  Flora  rules  the  gentle  realm  of  flowers, 
And  mother  Ceres  yields  us  corn  and  oil. 
Jupiter  gives  us  weather,  and  he  broods 
In  fecund  incubation  from  the  skies 
Over  the  earth  to  quicken  all  that  grows 
With  moisture  ;  but  he  sometimes  frowns  in  cloud 


Book  XVII.    THE  STORY  OF  777 A   CROSS.  491 

Not  kindly,  and  hurtles  down  the  thunderbolt. 
Know  it  was  Neptune  that  stirred  up  the  sea 
So,  in  that  insurrection  and  revolt 
Against  you  late,  and  stranded  you  forlorn, 
Happy  for  me  and  mine !  upon  this  isle  ; 
For  Neptune  is  the  sovereign  of  the  wave. 
Those  winds   that   blew  meantime  were  breath  in 

blast 

Puffed  from  the  cheeks  of  yEolus  who  holds 
The  invisible  dominion  of  the  air. 
The  world  is  peopled  dense  with  deities 
Whom  well  to  worship  all,  is  no  light  task. 
We  build  them  temples,  and  on  altars  there 
Pour  them  out  rivers  of  blood  from  victims  slain  ; 
Blood  is  the  favorite  drink  to  most  of  them. 
The  victims'  flesh  we  offer  them  for  food  : 
They  do  not  eat  it ;  so  we  eat  it  for  them. 
For  instance  now,  these  meats  purveyed  for  you 
Ere  going  to  the  shambles  to  be  sold, 
Were  duly  each  presented  to  some  god: 
So  we  may  gratify  our  appetite, 
And  feel  that  we  are  worshipping  the  while. 
But  Bacchus  is  our  hospitable  god: 
A  big,  bluff,  honest  face  we  figure  him, 


492 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XVII. 


Bloodthirsty  not,  but  fond  of  festal  cheer. 
Him  we  best  please  by  drinking  of  his  gift, 
Not  blood  of  beast  but  generous  blood  of  grape, 
And  spending  a  libation  of  the  same, 
Tribute  to  him,  the  end  of  every  feast." 

This  spring  and  flow  of  talk  idolatrous, 
Uncertain  how  much  serious  and  how  much 
A  play  of  skeptic  humor  half  ashamed, 
Was  a  sad  note  discordant  to  the  tune 
Of  chastened  reverent  feeling  in  the  breasts 
Of  men  and  women  owning  debt  indeed 
For  hospitality  sincerely  meant 
By  Publius  they  well  knew,  yet  paramount 
Allegiance  owning  to  a  jealous  God 
Who  brooked  no  name  divine  beside  His  own. 
All  toward  Paul  turning  waited,  and  he  spoke : 
"  O  Publius,  guests  are  we  and  thou  art  host ; 
Most  gracious  we  acknowledge  thee  to  be, 
As  most  ungracious  were  we  did  we  not, 
Or  undiscerning.     Thou  hast  honored  us 
Using  that  frankness  to  set  forth  thy  ways, 
Thine,  and  thy  fellow  countrymen's  ;  ways  yet 
Far  alien  from  the  ways  endeared  to  us. 


Book  XVII.    THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS.  493 

These  let  me,  honoring  thee  thus  with  return 
Of  frankness  like  thine  own,  declare  to  thee. 


"  We  count  that  thy  so-named  divinities 
Are  nothing  such  as  thou  supposest  them. 
They  are  not  gods,  since  God  is  one,  and  will 
His  incommunicable  majesty 
Permit  none  other  to  partake  with  Him. 
Perhaps,  when  ye  idolaters  enshrine 
Reputed  images  of  whom  ye  call 
Gods  and  these  worship  with  your  various  rites, 
It  is  with  some  endeavor  of  your  thought 
Beyond  the  sign  to  what  is  signified. 
But  so  even  is  your  worship  worse  than  vain. 
For  there  is  nothing  in  the  world  —  the  world 
Of  things  existent,  things  substantial,  real, 
Spirit  or  matter  —  that  as  counterpart 
Answers  to  these  conceived  resemblances, 
These  idols  framed  by  your  artificers, 
Pretending  to  be  images  of  gods ; 
Nothing,  I  mean,  that  can  be  called  Divine. 
Behind  them  there  is  something  real  indeed, 
But  evil,  not  good  ;  no  such  realit 
As  that  ye  dream.      Demons,  not  gods  are  they, 


494 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 


Who,  hid  behind  your  idols,  mask  and  mock. 
Therefore  we  can  but  hate  idolatry, 
And  flee  it  as  one  flees  a  pestilence. 

"  Forgive  me,  the  affront  is  not  to  thee, 
Not  to  thy  fellow  worshippers  misled, 
But  to  the  kingdom  of  the  Evil  One, 
That  emperor  of  the  powers  of  the  air 
Who  for  a  season  yet  has  sufferance  here 
To  practice  his  impostures  on  mankind. 
Thou  therefore,  O  lord  Publius,  understand, 
Thou,  and  ye  others  not  of  Hebrew  race, 
That  we,  full  gladly  sharing  this  fair  feast, 
And  out  of  true  hearts  thanking  him  our  host, 
Know  nothing  of  the  dedications  made 
Of  meats  or  drinks  partaken  to  those  gods 
No  gods  ;  but  give  our  worship  and  our  praise 
Only  to  one  God  over  all  Most  High, 
The  Maker  and  the  Ruler  of  all  worlds, 
Jehovah  named,  blessed  forevermore. 
Add  to  our  debt,  O  Publius,  also  this, 
That  I  have  spoken  thus  without  offence." 

Paul  ended  with  a  look  toward  Publius,  then 
Also  toward  Julius  present  there,  which  these 


Book  XVII.    THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS.  495 

Felt  as  fixed  firmness  tempered  with  appeal. 

Publius  took  counsel  with  quick  sounding  eyes 

On  the  centurion  bent,  and  answered  thus, 

His  own  thought  by  that  other's  fortified  : 

"O  Paul,  have  thou  thy  will  ;  no  will  have  I 

In  this  thing ;  all  is  one  to  me  ;  our  gods 

Are  our  conventions,  and  we  worship  them 

In  form,  but  not  in  spirit.      Strange  to  us 

It  seems,  us  more  enlightened  than  the  crowd, 

Us  who  have  tasted  of  philosophy, 

To  see  thee  thus  engaged  in  earnestness 

On  the  behalf  of  things  not  seen,  not  known." 

Paul  broke  in  with  a  burst  of  testimony: 

"  But  I  have  seen,  but  I  have  known.     The  Lord, 

The  Lord  Christ,  Son  of  God  declared,  from  heaven 

Flashed  in  a  sudden  vision  once  on  me, 

Sudden  and  swift,  for  both  my  eyes  went  blind." 

"  It  was  a  stroke  of  lightning  blinded  thee," 

Said  Publius.     "  Nay,  the  sky  was  cloudless  clear," 

Paul  answered,  "and  the  hour  was  high  mid  noon ; 

The  Syrian  sun  was  shining  in  his  strength. 

I  know  whom  I  believe  and  I  adore 

And  bless  Him,  calling  on  my  soul  and  all 

That  is  within  me  to  adore  and  bless 


496  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 

His  holy  name.     Whether  we  eat  or  drink, 

Or  whatsoever  do,  in  word  or  deed, 

We  His  redeemed  do  all  in  our  Lord's  name, 

To  God  the  Father  giving  thanks  through  Him." 

"  Is  this  thy  Lord  to  whom  thou  renderest  thus 

Thy  service,  the  whole  service  of  a  life," 

So  interrupted  Publius,  "is  this  Lord 

The  same  as  he  whom  Mary  tells  us  of?" 

"  The  same,  O  Publius,"  answered  Paul.    "  But  he  - 

I  thought  that  he  was  put  to  death,"  replied 

Publius.      "  Yea,  but  He  burst  the  bands  of  death, 

He  rose  in  power  and  glory  from  the  grave, 

He  thence  ascended  far  above  all  height 

Into  the  heaven  of  heavens  beyond  all  thought, 

Where  He  sat  down  enthroned  forevermore 

By  the  right  hand  of  God  ;  "  so  Paul,  enrapt 

And  with  his  rapture  aweing  all  who  heard. 

Publius  then  said,  for  now  with  meat  and  drink 
The  appetite  to  each  was  satisfied  : 
"  O  Paul,  what  thou  thus  sayest  quickens  in  me 
Desire  to  hear  the  rest  of  Mary's  tale. 
That  death  of  shame,  however  undeserved, 
Yet  fallen  on  him  as  if  inevitable  — 


Book  XVII.   THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS.  497 

He  surely  would  have  shunned  it,  if  he  could  — 
Had,  I  will  own,  induced  in  me  some  doubt 
Whether  the  man  who  suffered  it  could  be 
Indeed  the  worker  of  such  miracles 
As  those  that  Mary  thought  she  saw  from  him. 
But  his  triumphant  rising  from  the  dead, 
His  after  showing  of  himself  to  thee, 
That,  this,  if  that,  if  this,  did  happen — why, 
Such  conquest  over  death  and  Hades  won 
And  by  such  proof  assured  to  us,  were  much. 
But  let  us  listen  to  what  Mary  yet 
Will  tell  us  of  the  last  things  to  that  life 
And  of  the  shameful  death  that  ended  it." 

Then,  with  the  genial  sun,  somewhat  declined 
From  his  steep  noon,  streaming  his  golden  rays 
Into  the  room  to  qualify  the  cool ; 
And  with,  beside,  two  ample  braziers  brought 
Of  coals  in  ruddy  glow,  one  at  each  end, 
To  cheer  the  shadowed  spaces  of  no  sun, 
The  company,  in  comfortable  wise  — 
After  the  fragments  of  the  feast,  with  due 
Despatchful  ministry  of  practised  hands, 
Had  disappeared  disposed  themselves  at  will 


498  THE  EPIC  OP  PA  UL.  Book  XVII, 

And  sat  attentive  to  hear  Mary's  words. 

But  Mary's  words  hung  and  she  did  not  speak  ; 
Her  voice  had  like  a  failing  fountain  failed, 
And  drifts  of  pallor  whitened  all  her  cheek, 
A  doubtful  moment,  and  she  swayed  to  fall 
In  death  or  death-like  swoon  upon  the  floor. 
But  Ruth  who  sat  next  quickly  stayed  her  up  ; 
Then,  letting  her  sink  softly  toward  supine 
On  her  own  bosom,  held  her  resting  thus. 
Resourceful  ministration  soon  revived 
Her  spirits  to  Mary,  till  she  seemed  herself 
Again,  and  thought  that  they  might  trust  her  now 
Not  to  disturb  them  more  with  cause  for  fear. 
So,  with  a  certain  added  gentleness 
In  tone  and  manner  marking  her,  she  spoke 
Thus,  while  the  rest  with  added  reverence  heard  : 

"That  image  of  my  Lord  abides  to  me  ; 
I  see  Him  as  I  saw  Him  when  I  heard 
'  Behold  the  man  ! '     The  memory  of  my  eyes 
Is  vivid  and  it  seems  to  dazzle  dark 
The  vision  that  by  faith  I  ought  to  see. 
I  know  and  I  believe  that  Jesus  now 
Is  glorious  in  the  heaven  beyond  all  reach 


Book  XVII.   THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS.  499 

Of  anything  to  flaw  His  perfect  fair. 

But  what  he  then  was  still  will  swim  between, 

And  I  perforce  see  this  instead  of  that. 

My  ears  ring  with  the  maddening  murderous  shout 

Of  the  chief  priests  and  rulers  with  the  mob 

Mingling  their  voices  now,  'Crucify  Him  ! ' 

'  He  made  himself  the  Son  of  God,'  they  cry. 

That  frightened  Pilate,  and,  '  Whence  art  thou  ? '  he 

Asked  Jesus,  in  his  palace-hall  withdrawn  ; 

But  Jesus  never  answered  him  a  word. 

Pilate  was  vexed,  and  tried  browbeating  Him. 

1  Speakest  thou  not  to  me?     Dost  thou  not  know 

I  can  release  thee  if  I  will,'  he  said  ; 

'  Or,  if  I  will  can  send  thee  to  the  cross  ? ' 

Then  Jesus  spoke.      He  said  :  '  No  power  is  thine 

Save  as  bestowed  upon  thee  from  above. 

Therefore  who  gave  me  up  to  thee,  he  hath 

The  greater  sin.' 

Pilate  perhaps  was  awed, 
Or  he  perhaps,  albeit  a  cruel  man, 
Was  truly  for  this  once  compassionate. 
However  it  was,  he  sought  with  quickened  zeal 
To  pacify  the  Jews  for  the  release 


500  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 

Of  Jesus  ;  but  they  knew  that  governor, 
And  he  knew  that  they  knew  him,  and  when  they 
Cried  out,  '  Thou  art  not  Caesar's  friend,  if  thou 
Release  this  man  ;  whoever  makes  himself 
A  king,  speaks  against  Caesar/  Pilate  then 
Trembled  within  his  mind  for  guilty  fear. 
He  covered  over  his  weakness  with  vain  show 
Of  mock  and  sarcasm  as  with  Jesus  brought 
Forth  from  within  before  them  he  exclaimed, 
'  Behold  your  king ! '     Tumultuously  all 
Hooted,  '  Away  with  him  !     Away  with  him  ! 
Crucify  him  ! '  '  What !  Crucify  your  king  ?  ' 
Bitterly  said  Pilate,  dashing  ruth  with  sneer. 
Those  proud  chief  priests,  eating  their  pride  at  once 
And  God  abjuring,  said  :  '  We  have  no  king 
But  Caesar.'     Then  he  gave  Him  up  to  them. 

"  But  Pilate  acted  out  before  them  all 
In  symbol  a  purgation  of  himself. 
He  had  a  basin  of  water  brought,  and  washed 
His  hands,  and  said  :  '  Lo,  I  am  innocent 
Of  this  just  blood  ;  see  ye  yourselves  to  it.' 
And  all  my  people  shouted  out  a  curse 
Upon  themselves  which  for  their  sakes  I  fain 


Book  XVII.   THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS.  501 

Had  stopped  my  ears  against —  if  not  to  hear, 
Could  have  undone  that  dreadful  curse  !     They 

cried, 

'  On  us  and  on  our  children  be  his  blood ! ' 
God  waits  yet,  but  not  long,  to  wreak  that  curse. 

"That  was  the  end  of  all  until  the  cross. 
A  multitude  of  people  followed  Him, 
As  He  went  forth  out  of  the  city  gate 
Bearing  His  cross  to  Golgotha,  the  place 
Where  He  should  suffer.     Thither  going,  they 
Met  Simon  a  Cyrenean  coming  in, 
And,  of  some  wanton  humor  seized,  they  made 
Him  take  the  cross  and  bear  it.     With  the  throng 
Mingled,  were  many  women  who  like  me 
Wailed  and  lamented.     But  the  Lord  to  us 
Turning  said  :  '  Daughters  of  Jerusalem, 
Weep  not  for  me  ;  but  for  yourselves  weep  ye, 
Yea,  and  your  children.      For  the  days  will  come 
When,  Blessed  are  the  barren,  ye  shall  say, 
And  breasts  that  never  nourished  children.     Lo, 
Then  to  the  mountains  men  shall  lift  their  cry, 
Fall  ye  upon  us;  Cover  us,  to  the  hills.' 

"  While  they  nailed  Jesus  to  His  cross,  He  spake 


5°2 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 


Words  such  as  never  other  spake  before  ; 
Upward  He  spake,  praying,  and  not  to  them. 
'Father,'  He  prayed,  'forgive  them,  for,  behold, 
They  know  not  what  they  do.'     So  there  He  hung, 
The  Savior  of  the  world,  upon  His  cross. 
I  saw  the  soldiers  four  whose  watch  it  was 
Sit  unconcerned  —  not  knowing  what  they  did!  — 
And  cast  lots  for  the  garments  of  the  Lord. 
'Jesus  of  Nazareth,  King  of  the  Jews,' 

r^ 

Pilate  had  written  in  three  languages, 

Hebrew,  and  Greek,  and  Latin,  on  the  cross  ; 

For  so  he  gave  his  jeering  humor  play. 

The  chief  priests  winced  at  this,  and  begged  of  him, 

'  King  of  the  Jews,  write  not,  but  that  he  said, 

King  of  the  Jews  am  I.'      But  Pilate  spoke 

Curtly,  '  What  I  have  written,  I  have  written.' 

There  then  the  title  stood,  a  bitterness 

Mixed  in  their  cup  of  triumph  to  the  Jews, 

And  a  truth  deeper  far  than  Pilate  guessed. 

"  Mary,  the  mother  of  the  Lord,  stood  by ; 
Jesus  beheld  her,  and,  close  at  her  side, 
That  one  of  His  disciples  whom  He  loved. 
A  word  then  from  those  suffering  lips  which  wrung 


Book  XVII.    THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS.  503 

The  mother-heart  of  Mary  with  sweet  woe 
To  hear  it  spoken  at  such  time  as  this. 
'Woman,'  said  Jesus,  to  His  mother  speaking, 
'  Behold,  thy  son  !       He  meant  John,  for  to  him 
Likewise  He  spake,  'Behold,  thy  mother!'     So 
Thenceforward  Mary  had  with  John  her  home. 

'*  There  were  chance  passers-by  that  railed  on 

Him, 
Not  knowing,  those  too,  what  they  did  !     They 

scoffed, 
Wagging  their  heads:    '  Ha!    Thou  that  couldst 

destroy 

The  temple  and  rebuild  it  in  three  days, 
Save  thyself  now,  and  from  the  cross  come  down.' 
After  the  same  sort  the  chief  priests  and  scribes, 
Mocking  among  themselves,  made  mirth  and  said : 
1  Others  he  saved,  let  him  now  save  himself ! 
The  Christ  of  God,  the  King  of  Israel, 
Let  him  come  down  now  from  the  cross,  and  we, 
We,  will  believe  on  him.'     Two  robbers  even 
Crucified  with  him  joined  the  ribaldry, 
Tauntingly  saying,  '  Save  thyself  and  us  ! ' 
But  one  of  them  relented,  touched  with  grace. 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 

He  praying  said,  'Jesus,  remember  me 

When  Thou  art  come  into  Thy  kingdom!'   Faith 

Like  that,  to  see  and  to  believe  —  despite 

The  shame  and  seeming  helplessness  —  the  king 

In  Jesus  of  a  world  beyond  the  world, 

Won  on  the  Lord  ;  and  He —  He  too  with  faith, 

Sheer  faith,  faith  far  more  wonderful  in  Him  — 

Gave  answer  calmly  as  became  the  king, 

'  This  day  shalt  thou  be  with  me  in  Paradise.' 

"  It  grew  now  to  be  near  the  point  of  noon, 
And  there  fell  midnight  darkness  on  the  land 
Gross  for  three  hours  ;  it  was  as  if  the  sun 
In  heaven  would  not  behold  that  wickedness. 
Then  the  Lord  Jesus  uttered  a  loud  cry, 
The  saddest  that  on  earth  was  ever  heard ; 
'  Eli,  Eli,  lama  sabachthani,' 
He  said.     Those  are  the  first  words  of  a  psalm 
Prophetic  of  a  suffering  Savior  Christ ; 
They  mean,  '  My  God,  my  God,  wherefore  hast  thou 
Forsaken  me  ?  '     That  was  the  bitterness, 
That  must,  I  think,  have  been  the  bitterness, 
Which  most  He  dreaded  in  Gethsemane." 

Mary  looked  up  toward  Paul  with  eyes  that  asked 


Book  XVII.   THE  STORY  OF  THE  CROSS. 

Whether  she  well  divined  that  this  was  so. 
Paul  swerved  a  little  from  the  point,  but  said  : 
"  The  mystery  of  redemption  !     A  great  deep 
It  is,  to  us  unfathomable  quite - 
Soundless  as  is  the  mystery  of  sin. 
But  alienation  and  exile  from  God, 
Distance,  and  darkness,  and  abandonment, 
This,  sin  works  of  its  own  necessity  ; 
And  this  helps  make  the  sinner's  punishment. 
Therefore  to  feel  a  frightful  sense  of  this 
Perhaps  was  needful  to  atone  for  sin." 


Paul  so  far  only,  and  then  Mary  said: 
"  The  Savior's  sense  of  that  abandonment 
Must  have  been  short,  I  think,  as  short  as  sharp. 
For  following  close  upon  that  lonely  cry, 
There  came  this  word,  '  I  thirst.'    It  was  as  though 
The  imperious  overmastering  agony 
Of  spirit  past  —  the  flesh,  silenced  before, 
Had  leave  to  speak  now  witnessing  its  need. 
Anguished  the  word  was,  but  it  seemed  relief 
To  hear  such  sad  acknowledgment  succeed 
The  desolation  of  that  other  wail. 
They  brought  a  hyssop  drenched  in  vinegar, 


505 


5o6  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XVII. 

And  on  a  reed  lifted  it  to  His  lips. 

That  moisture  loosed  his  tongue  to  speak  once 

more, 

The  utter  last  time  that  he  ever  spake  — 
Until  He  used  His  resurrection  voice. 
The  words  were  :  '  It  is  finished  !     Father,  I 
Into  Thy  hands  commend  my  spirit.'     Loud 
He  spoke  thus,  and  therewith  His  head  declined, 
Surrendering  so  His  spirit  up  to  God. 
It  did  not  seem  like  dying,  as  men  die 
Of  sickness  or  of  violence  causing  death. 
I  could  not  but  bethink  me  how  He  said 
Once,  '  I  lay  down  my  life,  no  man  from  me 
Taketh  it,  of  myself  I  lay  it  down  !  " 

So  Mary,  with  a  cadence  in  her  voice 
That  meant  an  end  of  speaking  for  that  time. 


BOOK     XVIII 
KRISHNA. 


The  company  still  together  though  the  hour  is  late, 
Krishna,  at  the  request  of  Publius,  after  a  breathing-spell 
enjoyed  by  all  under  the  open  sky,  tells  the  story  of  the 
death  of  Buddha.  A  warning  recited  by  him  as  having  pro 
ceeded  from  the  dying  Buddha's  lips  against  all  speech  on 
the  part  of  his  disciples  with  womankind,  prompts  Krishna 
to  turn,  with  apology  in  his  manner,  in  a  kind  of  appeal  to 
Paul,  who,  answering,  gives  the  contrasted  teaching  of  Chris 
tianity  on  this  topic.  At  the  conclusion  of  Krishna's  recital, 
Publius  makes  a  few  characteristic  observations  suggested  by 
it,  and  the  company,  having  first  agreed  to  assemble  on  some 
favorable  day  at  dawn  to  hear  from  Mary  the  story  of  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus,  disperse. 


KRISHNA. 

Slowly  the  solemn  of  late  afternoon 
Settled  into  the  somber  of  twilight : 
It  was  a  pensive  company  that  there 
Sat  nursing  each  his  thought  as  if  alone. 
Then  Julius,  out  of  muse  and  memory, 
Spoke,  without  harming  the  suspense  of  awe 
That  held  all  as  pavilioned  round  with  God  : 
"Yea,  I  remember  to  have  heard  it  said, 
In  fact  it  was  a  story  of  the  camp 
Among  us  soldiers  in  Jerusalem, 
That  the  centurion  who  stood  by  and  watched 
The  doings  of  that  day  and  Jesus'  death, 
Said,  when  he  saw  that  having  so  cried  out 
He  yielded  up  the  ghost,  '  Surely  he  was 
The  Son  of  God!'" 

"  The  death  was  wonderful," 
Said  Publius,  "  not  like  that  of  any  man." 
He  spoke  with  reverence  far  from  insincere, 
And  yet  a  note  of  shallow  in  his  tone 


510  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

Was  dissonant  to  the  feeling  of  the  hour. 

This,  Krishna  with  a  fine  discernment  felt 

When  Publius  turned  to  him,  and  made  demand  : 

"  And  now,  O  Krishna,  tell  us  thou  of  him, 

Thy  master  Buddha,  how  he  met  his  death. 

But  first,  O  friends  my  guests,"  he  added  then, 

With  volatile  quick  turn,  "let  us  all  forth 

Into  the  open  underneath  the  sky 

And  shake  the  languor  of  our  sitting  off. 

The  night  is  fine,  no  wind,  and  weather  mild ; 

A  half  hour's  freedom  out  of  doors  to  breathe 

The  fresh  air,  and  with  motion  loose  our  limbs 

And  make  our  blood  brisk,  will  be  nigh  as  good 

As  a  night's  sleep  for  health  to  body  and  mind." 

Host  and  symposiarch,  Publius  clapped  his  hands, 

And  to  the  servants  promptly  answering  said  : 

"  Lamps,  and  more  braziers  brim  with  glowing  coals ; 

Also  refection,  cakes  and  wine,  good  store." 

Therewith  the  company  dispersed  at  will, 

Wandering  in  groups  or  singly  as  each  chose. 

When,  after  a  brief  interval,  they  all 
Were  under  roof  once  more,  refreshed  with  change, 
Publius  said  :  "  The  evening  yet  is  long, 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  511 

And  all  the  night  thereafter  is  ours  for  sleep, 
With  an  untouched  to-morrow  if  need  be 
To  borrow  from  and  piece  the  measure  out. 
Eat  ye  and  drink  at  leisure  and  at  ease  ; 
Meanwhile,  and  not  to  overtask  our  friend 
Here  who  likewise  shall  share  his  equal  chance 
With  us  of  what  may  stay  hunger  and  thirst, 
Let  us  content  our  nobler  appetite 
With  viand  brought  us  out  of  utmost  Ind." 

The  Roman  hugged  himself  with  a  pleased  sense 
That  he  had  turned  his  genial  phrases  right. 

The  Indian  for  his  part,  not  voluble 
By  nature,  would  have  wished  to  hold  his  peace  ; 
For  Mary's  tale  had  wrought  upon  him  so 
That  he  was  lost  in  thought  and  absentness. 
Loth  rallied  out  of  mute  to  use  of  speech, 
He  felt  the  bonds  of  courtesy  and  said : 
"  O  Publius,  would  thou  hadst  rather  been  content 
To  leave  this  Hebrew  story  uncompared. 
I  have  no  means  to  parallel  it  so 
As  need  were  I  should  do  for  right  effect  ; 
Since  neither  was  I  present  to  behold, 
Nor  lives  there  record  by  eyewitness  made." 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.         Book  XVIII. 

As  these  words  wavering  from  the  Indian  fell, 
The  dimness  of  the  lamplight  in  the  room, 
Clouded  with  fumy  issue  from  the  flame, 
Seemed  to  become  a  symbol  of  that  dark, 
That  doubtful,  that  uncertain,  which  he  thus 
Shadowed  his  tale  withal  —  strange  contrast  felt 
To  the  eyewitness  truth  and  lifelikeness 
Of  Mary's  story  by  full  daylight  told. 
But  Krishna  heartened  himself  to  firmly  say : 
"  Howbeit  there  is  tradition  that  we  trust. 
This  holds  the  voyage  was  peaceful  toward  the  end, 
The  voyage  of  Buddha  through  the  last  of  life  ; 
Not  without  pain,  but  peaceful  as  was  fit 
For  voyage  slow  tending  to  the  port  of  peace. 
There  was  no  persecution  of  the  Buddh  ; 
Or  he  had  long  outlived  it  ere  his  death. 
He  died  among  old  friends  who  loved  him  well, 
Soothing  him  toward  nirvana  with  all  heed 
Of  healing  words  spoken  to  him  or  heard 
From  him,  and  nothing  lacked  to  stay  his  steps, 
As  he  declined  gently,  with  neither  haste 
To  go  hence  nor  desire  to  linger  here, 
Down  the  slow  slope  that  slides  into  the  sea 
Of  utter,  utter  void  and  nothingness. 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  513 

"  It  was  a  kindly  office  rendered  him 
By  a  fast  friend,  Kunda  his  name,  that  brought, 
He  far  from  meaning  it,  the  master's  end. 
Kunda  prepared  his  master's  food,  a  dish 
Of  swine's  flesh  dried,  with  savory  messes  dressed. 
Our  lord  waxed  weary  with  walking,  for  he  was  old ; 
Full  fifty  years  long  since  his  wasted  youth 
(Wasted  his  youth  had  been  on  fleshly  lusts), 
He  had  gone  the  beggar's  ways  from  door  to  door 
While  he  taught  men  how  to  escape  from  life  ; 
Weary  thus,  Buddha  rested  in  a  grove 
Of  mangoes  ;  his  disciples,  a  great  band, 
Accompanying.     Kunda's  was  the  grove,  and  he 
Sat  by  the  master's  side,  and  with  his  ears 
Drank  in  deep  draughts  of  wisdom  from  those  lips. 
Then  he  besought  the  master  to  partake, 
The  master  with  his  disciples  to  partake, 
Refreshment  on  the  morrow  at  his  house ; 
By  silence  Buddha  signified  assent. 

"  So  at  the  hour  boar's  flesh  was  offered  him  ; 
And  he  did  not  refuse  it  for  himself, 
But  bade  his  host  give  other  food  to  them, 
His  brethren ;  sweet  rice  was  their  share,  and  cakes. 


514  THE  Ep!C  OF  PA  UL.         Book  XVIII. 

Some  prescience  warned  him  what  the  end  would  be  ; 

'  For  other  none,  save  such  as  I  myself/ 

The  Blessed  One  to  Kunda  listening  said, 

'Were  able  to  receive  this  nourishment, 

The  boar's  flesh,  and  convert  it  to  right  use. 

So  what  remains  thereof  when  I  have  done, 

Bury  it  under  ground  and  eat  it  not.' 

So  spoke  lord  Buddha  and  partook  the  meat. 

But  he  was  seized  straightway  with  colic  pangs 

That  griped  him  sore  ;  long  time  be  sought  in  vain 

For  ease  to  his  distress  ;  but  he  was  calm 

And  fully  self-possessed  amid  it  all, 

Uttering  no  complaint.     Relieved  at  last 

A  little,  he  to  his  attendant  said  — 

Ananda  that  one  was,  the  Venerable  — 

'On  now  to  Kusinara  I  will  go.' 

"  But  going,  he  fell  weary  with  the  way 
And  rested  underneath  a  tree.     '  I  thirst,' 
To  Ananda  he  said;  'fetch  me  to  drink.' 
But  Ananda  replied  :  '  This  stream,  behold, 
Is  turbid,  roiled  with  many  passing  wheels : 
Yon  other  river  is  a  pleasant  stream, 
With  banks  that  make  it  easy  of  access.' 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  515 

'  I  thirst,  O  Ananda,'  the  master  said 

A  second  time,  repeating  the  same  words. 

And  yet  a  second  time  too  Ananda 

Repeated  that  the  nearer  stream  was  foul, 

And  the  one  farther  on  approachable 

And  clear.     A  third  time  Buddha  said,  '  I  thirst,' 

And  a  third  time  repeated  those  same  words. 

Then  Ananda  no  longer  made  demur, 

But  took  a  bowl  and  to  the  streamlet  went. 

The  water  that  had  just  been  roiled  with  wheels 

Was  flowing  limpid,  bright,  and  sweet.    He  thought, 

'  How  wonderful,  how  marvellous,  the  power, 

The  might,  of  the  Tathagata ! '     But  he, 

The  Blessed  One,  received  the  bowl  and  drank. 

(Tathagata  we  call  our  Buddha,  so 

Honoring  him  as  one  who  holds  himself 

Filially  faithful  to  ancestral  ways.) 

"To  Kusinara  faring  forward  still 
The  Buddha  sowed  instructions  all  the  way. 
But  that  which  he  in  his  forethoughtful  care 
Said  for  the  solacing  of  Kunda's  mind, 
Should  Kunda  peradventure  afterward 
Hear  some  one  say  to  him,  '  O  Kunda,  that 


5 1 6  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.         Book  XVIII. 

Was  evil  to  thee  and  loss,  that  Buddha  died 
Having  partaken  his  last  meal  with  thee  '- 
What  Buddha  said  forefending  blame  like  that, 
Was  memorable.      He  Ananda  thus  taught : 
*  Tell  Kunda :  That  was  good  to  thee,  and  gain, 
That  the  Tathagata  then  died  when  he 
Had  his  last  meal  as  guest  of  thine  partaken. 
There  is  no  offering  of  alms  in  food 
Of  greater  profit  unto  him  who  gives 
Than  when  one  offers  a  Tathagata 
Food  that  once  eaten  by  him  he  departs 
With  that  complete  departure  wherein  naught 
Of  all  that  late  he  was  is  left  to  be. 

"  One  admonition  our  lord  Buddha  gave 
In  those  last  times  with  him,  which  let  me  pray 
From  some  of  you  pardon  that  I  report ; 
New  lessons  I  have  learned  of  womanhood, 
Sharing  these  feasts  of  converse  with  you  all. 
Now  Ananda  inquired  of  Buddha  this  : 
'  How,  master,  shall  we  deal  with  womankind  ?' 
*O  Ananda,'  the  master  made  reply, 
1  Refrain  from  seeing  them.'     But  Ananda 
Said :  '  If  by  chance  we  see  them  at  some  time  ?' 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  517 

'  Abstain,  O  Ananda,  from  speech  with  them,' 
The  Blessed  One  made  answer.     Ananda 
Once  more:   '  O  master,  if  they  speak  to  us  ?' 
'  Bestir  your  senses  to  keep  well  awake,' 
The  Buddha  said  in  final  warning  word." 

The  Indian  paused  hereon,  his  eyes  down  dropt, 
A  noble  gentle  shame  confusing  him. 
He  would  have  added  (what,  not  added,  Paul 
Felt  in  his  manner  of  reticence  implied) 
Tardy  acknowledgment  of  fault  his  own 
That  he  at  first  had  spurned  the  thought  proposed 
To  him  of  learning  aught  from  Mary's  lips  ; 
Acknowledgment  condign,  with  suit  to  be 
Judged  gently  since  his  master  so  had  taught  — 
All  this  he  would  have  said  in  words  outright, 
But  sense  of  other  duty  kept  him  dumb  ; 
Besides  that  he  was  conscious  in  his  mind 
Of  being  by  Paul  already  understood. 

Publius  as  master  of  the  feast  perceived 
Blindly  that  here  a  rally  of  some  sort 
Was  needed  for  the  rescue  of  the  cheer 
Just  trembling  on  the  balance  to  be  lost. 


518  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

He  was  perplexed,  but  his  perplexity 

Was  his  resource  better  than  ready  wit. 

For,  with  a  quick  dependent  instinct,  he 

Turned  him  to  Paul  unconsciously  confessed 

Ascendent  wheresoever  he  might  be, 

And  Paul,  thus  silently  appealed  to,  spoke  : 

11  Such  thought  of  woman  is  not  from  the  Lord  ; 

The  Lord  our  God  made  woman  one  with  man. 

Equal?     Nay,  equal  not.      Inferior?     Nay, 

Nor  equal  nor  inferior  ;  as  too  not 

Superior ;  rather,  part  of  him,  as  he 

Of  her,  they  twain  together  one,  and  whole 

Neither  without  the  other.     He  is  head. 

Not  lord  and  master  to  rule  over  her, 

As  she  not  slave,  not  servant,  to  be  ruled; 

She,  of  her  will  unforced,  subject  to  him 

Through  joyful  choice  of  reverence  and  of  love, 

And  he,  with  equal  mutual  reverent  love, 

Honoring  her  and  cherishing  as  himself." 

"  So  is  it  with  you,"  said  Krishna,  "  as  I  have  seen 
With  wonder,  and  admired ;  almost  convinced 
That  ye  herein  are  better  taught  than  I. 
If  I  perchance  in  anything  have  failed 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  5,9 

Of  reverence  meet  toward  womankind,  I  pray 
Pardon  ye  it  to  me  ;  and  hold  besides 
That  haply  my  lord  Buddha  had  himself 
Judged  otherwise  herein,  with  other  types 
To  judge  from  of  what  womankind  may  be." 

"  Yea,"  Paul  said,  "  he  but  judged  from  what  he 

saw ; 

Not  knowing  he,  as  our  Lord  Jesus  knew, 
What  God  from  the  beginning  and  before 
Established  as  the  order  of  His  world, 
And  looked  upon  it  and  pronounced  it  good. 
But  also  what  your  Buddha  judged  amiss 
Became  a  force  creating  what  he  saw  ; 
For  teaching  and  believing,  subtle  powers, 
Are  plastic  to  conform  us  to  themselves. 
What  ye  believe  of  woman,  teaching  her 
To  know  that  ye  believe  it  of  her,  yea, 
Making  her  half  believe  it  of  herself, 
This  she  hereby,  even  in  her  own  despite, 
Tends  to  become  ;  if  it  unworthy  be, 
Then  all  the  issuing  stream  of  humankind, 
Fouled  at  the  fountain  thus,  flows  forth  corrupt 
And  ever  more  corrupt  —  the  stream  turned  back 


520  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.         Book  XVIII. 

With  every  generation  to  its  source, 
And  adding  to  the  feculence  of  that. 

"The  ruin  has  no  remedy  but  one. 
The  Lord  Christ  by  a  woman  came  to  us, 
And  opened  a  new  fountain  for  our  race, 
Pure,  more  than  pure,  for  purifying  too. 
Life  drawn  from  Him,  life  fed  from  Him,  life  lived 
In  Him  and  for  Him,  that  alone  is  pure, 
And  endless  because  boundless  ;  blessed  ;  joy, 
And  peace,  and  power,  and  triumph  evermore. 
His  life  may  all  through  faith  in  Him  partake, 
Faith  which  unites  us  vitally  to  Him. 
Christ  is  the  founder  of  a  race  redeemed, 
Redeemed  from  sin,  and  death,  and  every  ill. 
In  Him  believing,  we  rejoice  with  joy 
Unspeakable  and  full  of  glory,  now 
Already  though  before  the  time  in  hope. 
Belief  in  misery  makes  miserable. 
We  do  not  need  to  be  defeated  so ; 
Thanks  be  to  God  Most  High  who  giveth  us 
The  victory  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  ! 

"  Would  that  thy  Buddha  groping  in  his  dark, 
Nobly  as  seems,  with  that  maimed  nobleness 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  52I 

Which  only  is  left  possible  by  sin 
Without  a  Savior  known,  ah,  would  that  he 
Had  known  a  Savior  such  as  Christ  the  Lord  ! 

"Yet  let  us  hear,  O  Publius,  if  so  please 
Thee  and  so  please  Krishna  likewise,  the  rest 
Concerning  Buddha's  death.     We  shall  at  least, 
Sorrowing  with  wholesome  sorrow  for  his  case, 
Learn  from  such  high  example  how  far  short 
The  highest  human  and  the  best,  unhelped, 
Must  fall  of  helping  helpless  humankind." 

The  tone  of  just  authority  in  Paul, 
Felt  to  be  not  assertion  of  himself 
But  fealty  to  his  Lord  effacing  self, 
Was  mixed  so  with  a  suasive  gentleness 
In  manner  and  even  a  certain  deference 
To  other  as  that  other's  right  from  him, 
All  without  harm  or  loss  allowed  to  truth, 
That  Krishna  was  both  charmed  and  overawed 
While  discomposed  not,  and  he  thus  went  on  : 
"  Ananda  was  concerned  to  know  what  dues 
Of  honor  should  be  paid  to  the  remains 
Of  the  Tath^gata  when  he  was  gone. 
But  Buddha  said  :  '  Ye  must  not  wrong  yourselves 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

To  honor  the  Tathagata's  remains ; 
Others  will  honor  these.     Be  zealous  ye, 
I  pray  you,  on  your  own  behalf.     Devote 
Yourselves  to  your  own  profit.     Earnest  be 
And  eager  and  intent  for  your  own  good.' 
Yet  Buddha  taught  that  the  Tathagata 
Was  to  be  honored  after  his  decease 
By  rites  of  reverence  to  his  remains 
Like  those  accorded  to  a  king  of  kings, 

"  Now  Ananda  the  Venerable  was  weighed 
To  heaviness  with  sorrow  at  the  thought : 
'  Alas,  I  still  am  but  a  learner,  much 
To  me  remains  of  labor,  ere  I  reach 
Nirvana ;  and  my  master,  he  so  kind, 
Is  on  the  point  to  pass  away  from  me.' 
So,  leaned  against  the  lintel  of  the  door, 
Ananda  stood  and  thought  and  thinking  wept. 
But  Buddha  sending  called  him  to  himself, 
And  said :  '  Enough,  O  Ananda,  weep  not, 
Nor  let  thyself  be  troubled.     Have  I  not 
Oft  told  thee  that  it  deep  inheres  in  things 
The  nearest  and  the  dearest  unto  us, 
That  we  must  leave  them,  rend  ourselves  away, 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  523 

Sever  ourselves  from  them  ?     How  could  it  be, 
Ananda,  otherwise  than  thus?     For  know, 
Whatever  thing  is  born,  whatever  comes 
Into  existence,  holds  within  itself 
The  seed  of  dissolution  and  decay ; 
Such  being  therefore  needs  must  cease  to  be. 
Long  time  thou,  Ananda,  to  me  hast  been, 
By  many  offices  of  love,  most  near, 
Unchanging  love  and  without  measure  large. 
Thrice  say  I  this  that  thou  mayst  know  it  well : 

^A, 

Long  time  thou,  Ananda  to  me  hast  been, 
By  many  offices  of  love,  most  near, 
Unchanging  love  and  without  measure  large. 
Long  time  thou,  Ananda,  to  me  hast  been 
By  many  offices  of  love,  most  near, 
Unchanging  love  and  without  measure  large. 
Thou  hast  well  done,  O  Ananda.     Faint  not, 
Thou  too  shalt  soon  Anasava  become  '- 
Whereby  our  lord  meant  his  disciple  soon 
Should  touch  the  wished-for  goal  himself  was  now 
Nigh  touching,  blest  nirvana,  last  surcease 
Of  all  the  ills  that  sum  up  human  life. 

"  At  length  lord  Buddha  said  to  Ananda : 


524  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XVIII. 

'  Go  now  for  me  into  Kusinara 

And  tell  them  the  Tathagata  is  here, 

Close  on  the  point  to  pass  forever  away. 

Say  :  Leave  no  room  to  chide  yourselves  too  late  : 

Alas,  and  he  in  our  own  village  died, 

He,  the  Tathagata,  and  we  then  failed 

To  come  and  visit  him  in  his  last  hours/ 

So  all  the  dwellers  in  Kusinara 

Came  and  did  honor  to  the  Blessed  One. 

"  Then  to  the  brethren  of  the  order  he 
Said :  '  If  in  mind  perchance  to  any  of  you 
Doubt  or  misgiving  lurk  concerning  aught, 
The  Buddh,  the  truth,  the  path,  the  way,  inquire 
Freely  before  I  pass,  that  afterward 
Ye  have  not  to  reproach  yourselves  that  ye 
Being  face  to  face  with  him  failed  to  inquire.' 
With  one  accord,  the  brethren  held  their  peace. 
The  second  and  the  third  time  those  same  words 
Did  the  Tathdgata  to  them  address ; 
But  even  the  third  time  they  were  silent  all. 
Then  with  much  pitiful  concern  for  them 
The  Buddha  said  :     '  It  may  be  out  of  awe 
Of  me,  your  master,  ye  keep  silence  thus. 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  525 

Speak  therefore  ye,  I  pray,  among  yourselves.' 

But  all  the  brotherhood  were  silent  still. 

Then  Ananda  the  Venerable  spoke  up 

And  said  :  '  A  wonder  and  a  marvel,  lord, 

I  truly  think  there  has  not  one  of  us 

A  doubt  or  a  misgiving"  in  his  mind 

As  to  the  Buddh,  the  truth,  the  path,  the  way. 

The  Blessed  One  made  answer  :    '  Ananda, 

Thou  from  the  fulness  of  thy  faith  hast  spoken ; 

But  the  Tathagata  for  certain  knows 

Not  one  of  these  five  hundred  brethren  all 

Doubt  or  misgiving  has  concerning  aught, 

The  Buddh,  the  truth,  the  path,  the  way.     No  one 

Of  all  but  guarded  is  from  future  birth 

To  suffering  ;  your  salvation  is  secure.' 

He  added  :  '  Brethren,  I  exhort  you,  know, 

Decay  inheres  in  whatsoever  is, 

Of  parts  composed,  since  these  may  be  dissolved. 

Inflame  your  zeal,  make  your  salvation  sure.' 

The  last  word  that  of  the  Tathagata. 

"  Yet  did  he  not  with  that  last  word  expire, 
But  enter  into  a  state  ineffable. 
From  stage  to  stage,  four  stages,  he  advanced, 


526  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

Of  meditation  more  and  more  withdrawn. 
A  fifth  stage  followed,  one  of  vacancy 
Compact :  all  seeming  substance,  seeming  form, 
Abolished  to  the  mind,  and  naught  but  space, 
Pure  space,  empty  and  formless,  colorless, 
Spun  out  to  infinite  on  every  side. 
The  next  degree  abolished  also  space, 
Replacing  that  with  reason  infinite. 
But  reason  infinite  then  passed  away, 
Dispersed  into  a  sense  of  nothingness. 
Then  sense  of  nothingness,  that  yielded  too, 
And  neither  anything  nor  nothing  was 
A  presence  in  sensation  to  the  soul. 
But  beyond  that  he  passed  into  a  state 
Between  unconsciousness  and  consciousness  ; 
Whence  next  he  issued  in  a  farther  stage 
Wherein  no  trace  of  consciousness  remained. 
Then  of  two  venerables  there  watching,  one 
Said  to  the  other,  '  The  Blessed  One  is  dead  ; ' 
But,  '  Nay/  that  other  made  reply,  '  not  dead, 
Only  beyond  where  thought  or  feeling  is.' 

"Then  by  regress  the  Blessed  One  returned 
The  way  that  he  had  traversed,  stage  by  stage, 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  527 

Till,  having  reached  the  first  stage,  now  the  last, 
That  of  deep  meditation,  he  expired. 

"  So  our  lord  Buddha  having  all  the  depths 
Sounded  unto  their  nethermost,  and  scaled 
Unto  their  topmost  all  the  soaring  heights, 
Of  thought  and  being,  like  a  weaver's  shuttle 
To  and  fro  passing,  and  found  naught  at  all 
The  substance  and  the  basis  of  the  world, 
Himself  at  last  absorbed  in  the  abyss 
Escaped  existence  and  sank  into  peace." 

The  lamps  had  burned  to  low,  and  some  of  them 
Had  flickered  to  a  fall,  while  Krishna  spoke - 
Their  fumy  flames  meanwhile  blurring  the  air 
To  dimness  deepened  with  the  deepening  night. 
The  stillness  of  the  room  was  audible, 
Accented  by  the  murmurous  monotone 
Of  Krishna's  muffled,  bland,  and  inward  voice. 
The  strange,  far-off,  unreal,  unthinkable 
Last  things  he  told  involved  the  laboring  mind 
Too,  in  a  sense  confused  of  cloud  and  dark. 
When  he  ceased  speaking,  with  that  word  pro 
nounced, 
"  Peace,"  like  a  hollow  sphere  of  sound,  no  core, 


528  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

It  was  as  if,  with  that  for  spell  outbreathed, 
Nirvana  softly  would  engulf  them  all. 

But  one  was  there  to  whom  such  spell  was  naught. 
"  '  Peace,' "  Publius  said,  reechoing  the  word, 
As  pondering  what  the  purport  of  it  was, 
"'  Peace,'  I  should  think  must  be  a  euphemism, 
As  the  Greeks  say  when  they  avoid  a  name, 
The  right  name,  for  a  thing  to  be  avoided. 
There  is  no  peace,  unless  there  be  some  one 
To  have  the  peace  ;  but  Buddha  then  was  not, 
Had  vanished  like  a  breath  breathed  on  the  air, 
If  of  his  end  I  have  understood  thee  right." 
"  Thou  hast  not  misunderstood,"  said  Krishna  ;  "  yet 
We  shrink  from  saying  of  Buddha,  '  He  is  not.' 
We  sheathe  the  sense,  and  softly  say  instead, 
'  He  has  ceased  to  suffer,'  '  He  has  touched  the  goal.' 
Himself  he  would  not  say,  '  I  shall  not  be ; ' 
But  if  he  taught  us  true  that  life  is  woe, 
Then  not  to  suffer,  needs  is  not  to  live  : 
Save  not  to  live,  salvation  there  is  none." 

"Aye,"  Publius  said,  "  I  see,  a  euphemism  ; 
A  needed  euphemism,  and  well  devised. 
For  who,  not  weary  of  life  through  long  defeat, 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  529 

Or  through  disease,  old  age,  or  loss  of  good, 

Or  else  exhausted  in  the  springs  of  joy 

Within  himself  through  waste  of  youth  and  health 

In  those  excesses  which  bring  on  decay 

Before  its  season  —  who  not  broken  so, 

Here  and  there  one,  not  many  in  any  time, 

Would  to  that  bait  proffered  without  disguise, 

Mere  blank  non-being,  spring  with  appetite  ? 

And  those,  the  few  who  did,  would  they  await 

Nirvdna  as  the  goal  of  long  pursuit, 

Not  snatch  it  instant  with  rash  suicide? 

We  Romans  have  a  growing  fashion  of  so 

Precipitately  rushing  on  our  end. 

I  trow  thou  wouldst  in  vain  strive  to  persuade 

Us  Romans  to  spend  tedious  years  and  years 

In  seeking  not  to  live  so  as  not  to  suffer; 

We  should  be  too  impatient  far  for  that." 

"O  Publius,"  Krishna  said,  "rash  suicide 

Is  no  escape  from  life.     Life  has  its  snare 

Safe  round  thee  still,  and  thou  art  born  again 

Into  another  form,  another  state, 

Worse,  and  not  better,  than  before.     The  Path, 

That  only,  leads  thee  to  the  utter  end : 

So  Buddha  taught  and  so  I  have  believed." 


530  THE  £PSC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

The  Indian  ceased  thus  with  the  air  of  one 
Wavering  where  he  had  certain  been  before ; 
And  Publius  felt  that  he  for  Krishna  spoke, 
Scarce  less  than  for  himself,  when  he  inquired : 
"Aye,  aye,  how  know  we  that  the  '  Path,'  to  name 
Thus  by  thy  word  a  thing  to  me  unknown, 
How  know  we  that  the  Path,  even  that,  indeed 
Will  lead  one  out  of  life  to  nothingness? 
If  so  be  Buddha's  doctrine  holds,  and  life 
Slides  on  from  form  to  form,  from  state  to  state, 
Unhindered  by  the  fact  of  suicide, 
How  know  we  that  there  ever  comes  an  end? 
Consider,  he  himself,  the  teacher,  may 
Who  knows?  —  this  moment  while  we  talk  of  him 
Be  fleeting  forward  on  the  endless  flight 
Fatal  of  that  metempsychosis  preached. 
What  surety  have  we  that  it  is  not  so  ? 

"And  since  so  much  we  ask,  let  us  ask  more, 
O  Krishna.     How  know  we  the  master  died 
After  the  manner  that  thou  toldst  us  of  ? 
That  Kunda's  kindly  hospitable  meal 
Was  followed  by  that  sickness  to  his  guest ; 
That  his  guest  bore  it  with  sweet  fortitude, 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  531 

Not  intermitting  his  serene  discourse 

The  while,  yet  weakening1  slowly  till  he  died- 

Thus  much,  I  say,  might  be  observed  by  those 

Who  stood  about  the  master  so  bestead  ; 

But  who  could  tell  that  in  his  secret  mind 

The  dying  Buddh  accomplished  all  that  strange 

Vicissitude  and  movement  to  and  fro, 

Which  thou  in  honey-flowing  speech  describedst, 

But  which,  pardon,  I  could  not  understand. 

Himself,  the  Buddha,  uttered  not  one  word 

Through  all,  made  not  a  motion  nor  a  sign. 

How,  pray,  did  those  disciples  round  him  pierce 

The  dark  and  silence  of  their  master's  mind, 

To  know  what  passed  therein  ?"     "  Ah,"  Krishna 

said, 

"  The  master  had  foretold  those  things  would  be 
To  him,  and  they  believed,  and  therefore  knew." 

"Aye,"  Publius  said,  "they  knew  by  faith,  not 

proof ; 

But  we,  we  of  the  West,  are  fond  of  proof. 
Yet  proof  of  Buddha's  dying  so  as  thou 
Describedst,  proof  likewise  that  he,  so  dying, 
Was  cancelled  quite  from  out  the  universe  — 


532  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XVIII. 

Proof  of  these  things,  conceded  these  things  were, 

Would,  I  can  see,  be  no  wise  possible ; 

We  may  believe  them,  but  we  cannot  prove. 

Now  if  thy  master  had  taught  otherwise, 

Contrariwise  indeed,  that  life,  not  death - 

Not  death,  but  life  victorious  over  death  — 

Was  the  chief  good,  and  that  this  good  the  chief 

Might  be  attained  by  us,  and  how  attained, 

That  were  a  doctrine  would  have  cheered  one  more, 

And  been  besides  more  capable  of  proof. 

At  least  good  proof  of  it  might  be  conceived. 

Buddha,  supposed  extinguished  utterly 

Out  of  the  world,  he  being  nowhere  at  all, 

Could  not  come  hither  back  and  testify, 

'  Behold  me,  I  am  non-existent  now.' 

But  one  who  taught  the  opposite,  who  taught 

That  death  was  not  the  end  of  life,  if  he 

Himself,  having  died,  could  conquer  death  and  live, 

Could  living  hither  come  and  speak  to  us, 

And  say,  '  I  told  you  I  would  rise  again  ! ' 

Why,  Krishna,  that  were  proof  and  '  Path '  indeed, 

Aye,  path  as  solid  as  a  Roman  road. 

"  It  seems  from  this  our  Hebrew  lady's  tale, 


Book  XVIII.  KRISHNA.  533 

That  Jesus,  ere  he  suffered  on  the  cross, 
Promised  again  and  yet  again  that  he 
Would  rise  the  third  day  from  the  dead  and  live. 
I  doubt  not  thou  thyself,  with  all  of  us, 
Wouldst  gladly  farther  hear  from  her  at  full 
Whether  and  how  this  promise  was  fulfilled." 

"  That  is  a  tale  for  a  new  day  and  dawn," 
Paul  said  ;  "  the  resurrection  of  the  Lord 
Was  morning  before  morning  when  it  came. 
Mary,  not  waiting  for  daybreak,  repaired 
By  twilight  to  His  tomb  and  found  it  void. 
A  great  while  before  clay  the  Lord  sometimes 
Would  rouse  him  and  go  forth  apart  to  pray ; 
Perhaps  a  great  while  before  day  He  now 
Woke  from  the  sleep  of  death,  and  left  his  tomb. 
What  morning  then  it  was  dawned  on  the  world  ! " 

"  Well  thought,"  said  Publius  ;  "  let  us  at  day 
break, 

Some  day  not  long  hence  when  the  weather  smiles, 
Meet  out  of  doors  and  see  sunrise,  while  we 
Hear  also  of  that  sunrise  on  the  world 
Paul  in  his  master's  resurrection  finds ; 
Whereof  to  hear  at  least,  surely  were  sweet. 


534  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XVIII. 

Spring  hastens  hither,  with  the  punctual  sun 
Returning  from  his  winter  in  the  south. 
There  will  not  fail  a  weather  warm  enough, 
Some  select  balmier  morning  by  and  by, 
To  make  it  pleasant  for  us,  in  a  place 
I  know  of  on  the  sheltered  ocean  shore 
Fronting  full  east,  to  meet  and  hear  a  tale 
So  well  befitting  spring  and  morning  both 
As  a  tale  told  of  victory  over  death. 
I  will,  if  so  it  please  all,  undertake 
To  rally  you  in  season  when  signs  say,  Now  !  " 

Thereon  the  company  broke  up,  with  thanks 
From  each  guest  to  the  host  for  heartsome  cheer 
Provided  ;  and  with  silent  prayer  from  each 
That  God  would  bless  him  through  their  guestship 

there 
More  than  he  dreamed  of  needing  to  be  blessed! 


BOOK     XIX. 
BAPTISM    OF   KRISHNA. 


Krishna,  much  wrought  upon  in  his  secret  mind,  seeks  a 
private  interview  with  Paul.  The  two  converse  at  large,  Paul 
expounding  his  doctrine  of  sin  and  of  salvation  through  faith  in 
Christ.  Krishna  resists,  feeling  nevertheless  an  impulse  in 
himself  responsive  to  Paul's  words.  They  part  with  nothing 
concluded  between  them,  but  Krishna  meditating  alone  is 
finally  brought  to  obedience  of  faith.  He  seeks  the  company 
of  the  Christian  disciples  and  declares  himself  a  believer. 
He  expressing  eager  desire  to  testify  as  soon  as  possible  in 
some  outward  act  commanded  by  Jesus  his  readiness  to  obey 
Him,  Paul  tells  him  of  the  command  "  Be  baptized,"  and 
Krishna  accordingly  is  baptized  by  Aristarchus,  Paul  giv 
ing  the  new  disciple  appropriate  counsel  and  exhortation. 


BAPTISM    OF    KRISHNA. 

As  the  days  passed,  the  prisoner  Paul,  allowed 
The  freedom  of  his  ways  about  the  isle, 
Would  often,  musing  by  himself  alone  — 
Or  haply  his  shadow  Stephen  following  so 
As  never  to  be  seen  yet  ever  see 
In  jealous  loving  watch  and  ward  of  him  — 
Walk  in  seclusions  well  to  Julius  known 
Where,  held  by  all  the  islanders  in  awe 
And  sentried  as  if  sentried  not  the  while, 
He  could  be  safe  in  sense  of  solitude 
And  easement  from  the  fret  of  custody. 

He  walking  thus  one  sunny  afternoon, 
The  Indian  met  him  at  the  hither  goal 
And  entrance  to  his  wonted  rounding  ways, 
And  with  such  salutation  greeted  him 
As  seemed  to  seek  access  for  mutual  speech. 
Paul,  out  of  insulation  and  himself 
Emerging  wholly  at  his  fellow's  call, 
Rallied  at  once  to  be  a  social  man  ; 
He  welcomed  Krishna  frankly  to  his  side, 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIX. 

And  they  twain  walked  and  talked  together  there. 

"  O  Paul,"  said  Krishna,  "  I  am  not  at  rest ; 

Thou,  and  that  Mary's  story  of  her  Lord, 

Have  deeply  shaken  my  repose  in  me. 

There  must  have  been,  lodged  in  me  from  the  first, 

A  witness  ready  to  speak  up  and  say, 

'Hearken,  O  Krishna!'  when  the  name  of  'God' 

Fell  on  my  ear.     For  since  that  word  from  thee, 

I  have  not  ceased  to  hear  within  me  cry 

Reverberant  through  the  chambers  of  my  soul  — 

Like  a  voluminous  echo  shouting  round 

Reduplicated  images  of  voice  — 

Clamor  and  attestation  vehement 

Confirming  what  thou  saidst  that  day  of  God, 

And  of  our  orphanhood  without  Him.     Oh, 

My  friend,  that  I  might  find  Him,  I,  even  I  !  " 

Such  passion  in  passivity  moved  Paul 
To  pity,  which  he  hid,  while  thus  he  spoke : 
"  It  is  the  answer  of  the  infinite 
Within  thee  to  the  infinite  above 
Thee  and  beneath  thee  and  about  thee  round. 
God  made  thee  for  Himself,  and  Himself  is 
The  only  good  that  can  content  thy  mind. 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

Feel  after  Him  and  find  Him,  He  is  nigh, 
Drawn  nigh  and  drawing  nigh,  in  Jesus  Christ. 
Not  to  believe  in  Him,  God's  Son  made  flesh  — 
He  once  revealed  to  thee  —  this,  this,  is  sin  ; 
And  sin  is  death  ;  but  to  believe  is  life. 
Believe  and  live,  O  Krishna." 

"Thy  word  'sin,' 

O  Paul,"  said  Krishna,  "  it  perplexes  me. 
What  is  sin  ?     Evil,  I  guess.     Now  evil  I  know 
In  many  forms  —  forms  many,  essence  one  — 
Misery  all.     But  sin  to  thee,  I  trow, 
Is  something  else  than  simple  misery." 

"  O,  yea,"  said  Paul,  "  and  measurelessly  more. 
No  misery  is  like  sin,  but  sin  is  evil 
Not  to  be  told  in  terms  of  misery. 
The  sinner  is  an  enemy  of  God  ; 
God  is  against  him,  and  the  wrath  of  God 
Abides  upon  him  ;  such  is  the  evil  of  sin. 
For  sin  is  the  transgression  of  the  law, 
That  law  which  is  the  will  of  God  express 
In  precept,  or  that  law  more  broad,  more  deep, 
Higher,  which  is  the  will  of  God  inwrought 
Into  the  substance  of  the  human  heart. 


^    . 

THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX 


Thou  canst  not  live  transgressor  of  this  law 
And  be  at  peace  ;  God  is  too  merciful 
To  suffer  it.     For  mercy  it  is  in  God 
Which  wrath  we  call  ;  against  the  sinner,  wrath ; 
But  toward  the  man,  mercy  eager  to  save : 
The  wrath  of  God  is  as  the  shepherd's  crook* 
Which  with  threat  drives  the  foolish  flock  to  fold. 
Hasten,  obey,  be  folded,  thou,  by  Him, 
The  shepherd  and  the  bishop  of  thy  soul. 
Within  is  safety,  life,  and  peace,  and  joy ; 
Ruin,  without,  and  wretchedness,  and  death." 

"A  living  Will,"  said  Krishna,  "in  the  waste, 
The  wild  waste,  of  a  world  of  chance  and  fate  — 
A  Will  amid  it,  nay,  much  more,  a  Mind, 
A  Heart,  present,  presiding  over  all 
The  blind  whirl  of  the  things  we  see,  whereof 
We  seem  ourselves  a  petty  part,  impelled 
Helpless  —  whither,  who  knows?  —  this  is  to  me 
A  thought  greater  than  the  great  universe ; 
Yet  does  it  less  than  that  oppress,  appal ; 
I  feel  my  spirit  in  me  quickened  too 
While  overwhelmed.     O  were  it  true  indeed  ! 
And  were  this  Being  whom  thou  namest  God 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

Willing  to  condescend  and  think  on  me  ! 
I  feel  that  I  could  love  Him  if  I  could 
Believe  Him  —  in  the  teeth  of  all  that  seems 
To  swear  against  Him  in  this  dreadful  world  !  " 


"  Tile  whole  creation  groaneth,  yea,"  said  Paul, 
"And  travaileth  under  the  curse  of  sin. 
But  the  blind-bondman  universe  awaits 
With  earnest  expectation  a  new  day 
When  he  shall  be  delivered  from  his  thrall, 
To  share,  we  know  not  how,  that  liberty 
Which  is  the  birthright  of  the  sons  of  God. 
Meantime  the  discord  ^nd  the  perjury 
Thou  seest  of  a  distracted  universe 
Forsworn  against  its  Maker  !     Yet  even  so 
Enough  abides  unshaken  from  the  firm 
Fair  order  of  the  first  all-wise  design, 
To  testify  His  everlasting  power 
Who  framed  it.     But,  beyond  that  perjury 
Thou  findest  in  the  janglings  of  the  world 
Browbeating  faith  herself  to  disbelieve, 
Is  the  blaspheming  atheous  spirit  in  man 
Which  will  not  God.     O  strife  and  warfare  strange 
Within  us  !     Godward-springing  instinct  fain 


542  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIX. 

To  answer  '  Abba,  Father  ! '  to  His  call, 

And  all  the  while  rebellion  muttering,  '  Nay  ! ' 

0  wretched,  wretched  creatures  that  we  are ! 
Who,  who  is  able  to  deliver  us 

Out  of  the  clinging  body  of  this  death? 

1  thank  my  God,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  ! 

"  Christ's  voice  against  the  clamor  of  the  world, 
His  still  small  voice,  heard  by  the  inner  ear 
Of  whosoever  will  heed  and  obey, 
Makes  music  of  this  roaring  dissonance 
Which  dins  and  deafens  every  one  besides. 
Hush  the  gainsaying  of  the  heart  within, 
O  Krishna,  the  dull  heart  of  unbelief, 
And  hearken  if  thou  shalt  not  presently 
Hear  Him  say,  Come.     It  is  a  heavenly  sound, 
Heard  never  save  by  the  anointed  ear 
Of  true  obedience ;  but  once  heard  thereby 


.  -  • 

It  ever  after  lingers  in  the  sense 

yi^  v 

A  haunting  invitation  still  obeyed. 


A  haunting  invitation  still  obeyed, 
And  still  as  we  obey  it,  drawing  near 
And  nearer  to  that  Voice  forevermore, 
Forevermore  we  hear  the  harmony 
Evolved  from  the  confusions  of  the  world 


Book  XIX.         BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

Grow  perfect  and  the  discord  die  away. 

Like  as  a  human  father  pitieth 

His  children,  so  Jehovah  God  Most  High 

Pitieth  them  that  fear  Him.     This  long-  since 

We  heard  through  one  inspired  from  God  to  sing 

It  cadenced  in  our  sweet  and  solemn  psalms." 

Krishna  could  not  but  speak  his  froward  thought 
"It  looks  such  contradiction  to  the  fact 
Staring  us  in  the  face  from  round  about 
Us  wheresoever  in  the  world  we  turn 
Our  eyes  and  see  the  seeming  pitiless 
Ongoing  of  the  blind  necessity 
That,  deaf  and  blind  and  irresistible, 
Rides  like  a  Juggernaut  upon  his  car 
Crushing  beneath  the  wheels  the  hearts  of  men 
And  spirting  up  their  blood  to  splash  his  feet !  " 

Unwonted  passion  heaved  the  Indian's  breast, 
And  shook  the  tones   in   which   he   said   these 

things. 

Paul  gently  made  reply  as  one  that  knew : 
"Yea,  such  the  spectacle  that  sight  beholds; 
Nor  ever  other  had  the  mind  of  man 
Guessed,  had  the  voice  of  God  not  spoken  clear 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  Book  XIX- 

To  Faith,  revealing  His  veiled  fatherhood  : 

The  blatant  falsehood  of  the  seeming  fact 

Failed  in  the  ear  of  Faith  hearing  that  word. 

She  said:  '  It  must  be  true  ;  how  otherwise 

Than  because  God  Himself  who  cannot  lie 

Declared  it  could  such  gospel  come  to  men  ? 

Not  from  the  world  of  sense  ;  that  world  instead 

Gainsays  it  with  all  clamor  of  perjury ; 

Not  from  the  heart  of  man  averse  from  God 

And  full  of  alien  fear  through  hate  of  Him  : 

For  filial  fear  it  is,  begot  of  love, 

Not  alien  fear,  of  conscious  hate  begot, 

That  God  desires  from  men  and  will  reward 

With  pity  like  a  father's  for  their  state. 

Yea,  such  a  gospel  must  from  God  have  come ; 

Let  God  be  true  and  the  whole  world  a  liar.' 

So  Faith  cried  out  in  passionate  protest 

Against  appearance,  and  clasped  fast  her  creed. 

"  But  when  the  fulness  of  the  time  was  come, 
God  sent  a  mighty  succor  down  to  Faith 
Faint  with  her  fasting  in  the  wilderness. 
From  His  own  bosom  He  His  only  Son, 
Only  and  well-beloved,  the  express 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  CAZ 

._. 

Image  of  His  own  person  and  the  bright   « 

*^\^.  tr"*" 

Effulgence  of  the  Father's  glory,  tore 
And  bade  Him,  joyful  at  the  mission  He  : 
'Empty  Thyself  of  thine  equality 
With  Me  in  Godhead ;  take  the  lowly  form 
Of  a  bondservant ;  fashioned  like  a  man 
Humble  Thyself  to  be  obedient 
Through  all  degrees  of  all  obedience 
Unfaltering  down  to  that  extreme  degree 
Of  death,  yea  even  of  death  upon  the  cross! ' 
For  God  so  loved  the  world,  with  pity  loved, 
That  He  His  own  Son  and  His  only  gave 
That  whosoever  should  on  Him  believe 
Might  perish  not,  but  have  eternal  life. 

"A  paradox  divine  of  love  and  pity- 
God  sparing  not  His  own  coequal  Son, 
But,  last  impossible  proof  of  love  to  men, 
Giving  Him  freely  up  to  suffer  so, 
The  just  for  the  unjust,  if  haply  He 
Might  bring  us  unto  God  !     His  father's  heart 
Of  tenderness  toward  His  obedient  Son 
Breaking,  while  He  that  Son  delivered  up  — 
Father  and  Son  together  overcome 


546  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIX. 

With  love  and  pity  toward  a  wretched  race 

Apostate,  disobedient,  rebel,  lost ! 

Well  spake  that  Savior  Son  while  yet  He  lived 

A  heavenly  exile  here  on  earth  —  He  now 

About  to  suffer  at  the  hands  of  whom 

He  came  to  save  —  making  the  sum  of  sin 

Consist  in  not  believing  upon  Him. 

Not  to  believe  on  such  as  Jesus  Christ 

Seen  living,  the  exemplar  of  all  good, 

That,  that,  was  sin  indeed.     Yet  greater  sin, 

Yea,  sin  inclusive  and  conclusive,  this  — 

Not  to  believe  on  Christ  raised  from  the  dead  ! " 

Paul  interrupted  his  discourse  with  pause. 
He  eased  the  pressure  on  his  heart  with  prayer, 
While  Krishna  slowly,  softly,  sadly  said  : 
'  Sin  as  transgression  of  a  law  supreme; 
Law  as  expression  of  a  living  Will ; 
Nay,  the  existence  of  a  living  Will 
Sovereign  over  an  ordered  universe ; 
Much  more,  a  Heart  behind  the  Will  to  feel 
Pity  and  love,  such  pity  and  such  love, 
Not  idle  passion  but  at  work  to  save, 
Save  at  vicarious  cost  so  great  —  these  thoughts, 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

Ill  canst  thou  know  how  new  they  are  to  me, 
How  strange!     Sin,  sin  —  and  sinner  I,  for  this, 
That  I  do  not  believe  on  him ! 

"  But  thou, 
Tell  me,  What  is  it  to  believe  on  him? 

I  willingly  believe  that  he  was  good, 
Was  wise,  was  gentle,  gracious,  merciful." 

"  Believe  that  he  was  what  he  claimed  to  be," 
Said  Paul,  "  absolute  lord  of  life  and  thought 
To  all  men,  and  to  thee.     Acknowledge  Him 
Thy  Lord ;  believing  is  obeying  here. 
To  whom  He  Master  is,  to  them  is  He 
Also  a  Savior  ;  trust  thyself  to  Him." 

II  A  fearful  act  of  self-surrender  thou, 

O  Paul,"  said  Krishna,  "thus  proposest  to  me. 
Take  Jesus  for  my  lord  in  life  and  thought, 
Absolute  lord  as  thou  hast  strongly  said  it, 
That  might  be,  for  what  were  it  but  exchange 
Of  masters,  Buddha  left  for  Jesus  ;  true, 
Never  such  claim  of  mastership  made  he, 
Our  Buddha,  as  thou  sayest  thy  Jesus  makes  — 
But  to  commit  myself  into  the  hands 
Of  any,  whosoever  he  may  be, 


547 


548  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX. 

To  be  saved  —  saved  from  what,  to  what,  how 
saved?"— 

With  sudden  turn  on  Paul,  Krishna  thus  spoke, 
The  gentleness  which  was  his  manner,  now 
To  almost  fierceness  changed,  so  vehement 
Was  the  revulsion  and  revolt  expressed. 
"Am  I  so  lost  I  cannot  save  myself?" 
He  added,  when  he  could  command  his  tones 
To  speak  with  full  becoming  courtesy  — 
An  inexpugnable  repulsion  yet 
Shown  of  the  answer  that  he  thus  invoked. 

Calmly,  but  without  effort  to  be  calm, 
"O,  yea,"  said  Paul,  "so  lost,  and  worse  than  so; 
So  lost  thou  dost  not  wish  to  save  thyself; 
Nay,  dost  not  know  thou  needest  to  be  saved. 
It  is  the  sad  besotment  deep  of  sin, 
Wherein  not  thou  alone  but  all  of  us 
Since  Adam,  the  first  man,  are  sunk  and  lost. 
We  are  dead  in  sin,  this  even  from  our  first  breath, 
And,  like  the  dead,  know  not  that  we  are  dead, 
And,  like  the  dead,  care  not  to  live  again, 
Nor,  more  than  they,  could,  if  we  would,  revive. 
A  dreadful  doom  of  helpless  living  death ! 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  549 

Helpless,  yet  hopeless  not,  blessed  be  God ! 

Yea,  there  is  hope,  albeit  not  in  ourselves; 

Christ  is  a  power  of  life  that  overflows 

To  all  that  will  make  ready  a  way  for  Him 

To  enter  by  the  gladsome  gates  of  will. 

He  quickens  whom  He  will,  but  will  not  quicken 

Save  who  will  say  to  Him,  '  Lord,  quicken  me !' 

A  paradox,  sayest  thou,  hard  to  be  solved? 

Yea,  more,  outright  impossibility  — 

With  man  impossibility,  but  not 

With  God ;  with  God,  all  things  are  possible." 

"Thou  makest  this  thing  'sin,'  "  the   Indian  said, 
"  Such  evil  as  is  more  miserable  far 
Than  misery's  self.     Who  taught  thee  this?     'Sin,' 

'sin'- 

Is  it  not  perhaps  some  specter  of  the  mind 
Only,  unreal  as  horrible,  which  thou 
Hast  conjured  up  from  nothing  to  thyself 
In  thy  lone  brooding  on  the  riddle  of  things?" 

Paul  hearing  this  thought  backward  of  the  time 
When  Porcius  Festus  brusquely  said  to  him 
In  public  presence:  '  Paul,  thou  art  mad;  thy  long 
Deep  pouring  over  books  turns  wild  thy  wits.' 


550 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX. 


With  himself  musing  :  '  One  in  his  right  mind 

Thus  to  be  judged  distraught  by  those  distraught  !  ' 

He  answered:  "  Yea,  that  is  a  wile  I  know 

Of  Satan's  playing  on  this  human  heart 

Of  ours,  deceitful  as  it  is  above 

All  things  and  desperately  wicked,  yet 

Insanely  cunning  in  complicity 

Against  itself — a  wile  I  know  too  well 

To  cheat  us  into  thinking  naught  of  sin. 

A  bugbear  of  the  morbid  conscience,  sin  ! 

I  might  myself  have  been,  I  cannot  know, 

Lulled  by  this  lie  into  false  fatal  peace  ; 

But  the  Lord  Christ  Himself  appeared  to  me 

In  light  like  lightning  though  a  hundred  fold 

Keener,  shot  suddenly  from  out  a  clear 

Sky  at  midnoon,  and  called  me  by  my  name, 

The  name  that  then  I  bore  ;  '  Saul,  Saul,'  He  said, 

'Why  dost  thou  persecute  Me?'     '  Thee,'  said  I, 

'Who  art  thou,  Lord? '  And  He,  'Jesus  I  am 

Whom  thou  dost  persecute.' 

"  That  moment  first, 
In  its  true  hideous  native  aspect  shown, 
Sin  was  revealed  to  me.     I  saw  it  wear 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

A  face  of  horrible  malignity 

Gnashing  its  teeth  on  Jesus,  the  One  Man 

Who  sinned  not  ever  and  yet  died  for  sin, 

Died  for  the  sin  that  slew  Him,  for  my  sin 

That  slew  Him  on  the  bitter  cross,  that  still 

Was  slaying  Him  afresh  —  who  died  for  me. 

I  found  the  truth  and  meaning  of  those  words 

By  Jesus  from  the  imminent  verge  of  death 

Spoken,  that  not  believing  upon  Him 

Was  the  one  sin.     When  the  ideal  man 

Is  shown  us,  then  to  know  Him  not  for  such 

Betokens  us  how  besotted  !  —  beyond  hope  ; 

But  if  the  ideal  man  be  Son  of  God 

And  bring  us  out  of  heaven  a  word  from  Him, 

Not  to  receive  the  message,  nay,  to  flout 

The  messenger  himself  as  I  had  done, 

Yea,  was  that  moment  doing  when  the  light 

I  spoke  of  fell  on  me  —  what  height,  what  depth 

Of  sin  !     O,  sin's  exceeding  sinfulness  ! 

And  yet,  not  so  even  is  the  measure  full. 

For  God  in  testimony  of  His  Son 

Put  forth  the  working  of  His  mighty  power 

And  raised  Him  from  the  dead,  exalting  Him 

To  the  right  hand  of  glory  with  Himself. 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX. 

Christ  then,  there  sitting  by  His  Father's  side 
And  with  Him  reigning,  victor  over  death 
And  over  him  that  had  the  power  of  death, 
The  devil,  sent  thence  the  Holy  Spirit  down 
Hither  to  us  to  lead  us  into  truth. 
The  Holy  Spirit  in  thy  heart,  O  Krishna, 
Grieve  Him  not,  send  Him  not  away  from  thee  ! 
It  was  His  secret  prompting  made  thee  take 
That  spring  toward  God  at  mention  of  His  name. 
Yield  to  Him,  He  desires  thy  good,  consent 
To  be  convinced  of  sin  —  sin  still  committed 
Till  thou  believe  on  Jesus  Christ  as  Lord  ; 
And  now  a  sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost !  " 

Solemn  the  words,  spoken  solemnly  by  Paul  ; 
They  wrought  an  awe  in  Krishna  hearing  them. 
The  sense  indeed  was  half  not  understood  ; 
Yet  not  the  less,  almost  it  seemed  the  more, 
They  touched  him  to  the  quickest  in  his  soul. 
Paul  too  was  awed  and  did  not  further  speak, 
Thinking,  '  Let  me  beware  not  to  obtrude 
Myself  untimely  between  God  and  man ! ' 
Nay,  even  he  would  that  Krishna  were  alone, 
To  wrestle  in  that  solemn  solitude 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  553 

Wherein  needs  must  at  last  the  human  spirit 

Ever  transact  the  awful  mystery 

Of  its  own  reconcilement  with  its  God. 

Yet  Paul  so  wishing  still  would  not  withdraw, 

He  might  inhospitable  seem  or  seem 

Too  conscious  of  his  fellow's  inward  strife  ; 

He  prayed  in  silence  with  unutterable 

Strong  yearning  of  desire  quickened  with  hope : 

'  Let  Krishna  win  the  victory  of  defeat  ! ' 

The  Indian  soon  with  gesture  of  farewell 
Unspoken,  which  meant  thanks  and  courtesy 
Habitual,  but  meant  also  not  habitual 
Appeal  for  sympathy  in  felt  helplessness, 
As  who  should  say,  '  Pray,  pray  for  me,'  retired. 

'Impossible  ! '  so  he  murmured  to  himself  ; 
'  I  would  have  paid  a  hundred  million  years 
Of  pain  and  patience  and  unceasing  toil 
To  buy  escape  from  being  and  misery. 
Now  to  accept  deliverance  as  a  gift, 
Acknowledging  that  I  cannot  purchase  it  — 
I  sicken  within  me  at  the  very  thought ! 
Deliverance  not  from  being  but  misery  — 
If  that  could  be  !     Fulness  of  life,  not  death  ! 


554 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX. 


Aye,  that  were  better  —  were  it  possible  ! 

I  do  not  wish  to  cease  from  consciousness 

If  consciousness  can  be,  apart  from  woe. 

O  Thou  who  must  be,  Thou  whom  since  I  heard 

Thy  name  I  cannot  doubt  more  than  I  doubt 

Myself,  Thou,  God,  is  this  thy  word  indeed, 

That  I  am  lost  in  sin  as  not  believing 

On  that  man  Jesus  for  mine  only  Lord? 

Is  he  thy  Son  ?     Shall  I  trust  all  to  him  ? 

All,  all,  as  if  I  were  a  little  child  ? 

'  What  is  it  in  my  heart  that  answers,  Yea  ? 
Is  it  Thou,  O  Holy  Spirit  ?    If  it  be 
Thou,  and  none  other  and  naught  else  than  Thou 
Then  certify  Thyself,  give  me  a  sign  ! 
Ah,  but  I  know,  I  know.     O  heart  within, 
Thou  wilt  not  cheat  thyself  thus !     Thou  and  I, 
We  know  full  well  when  God  speaks  it  is  He, 
He  and  none  other.     Other  none  than  Thou, 
Paul's  God,  and  mine,  and  mine,  and  mine,  O  yea, 
Who  but  my  God  could  speak  thus  closely  to  me? 
O  Buddha,  Buddha,  trusted  long  in  vain ! 
In  whom  I  took  my  refuge  once,  behold, 
My  house  of  refuge  then  supposed  in  thee 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

Is  melted  into  ruin  round  about  me. 
I  am  a  naked  soul,  unhoused,  disclad  ; 

O  God,  receive  me,  lo,  I  come  to  Thee  ; 

f^s^^*^ 

Forgive  my  sin  that  I  have  not  believed 
Earlier  in  Christ  thy  Son,  whom  now  I  take 
To  be  my  Lord  henceforth.     I  trust  to  Him 
To  save  me  and  I  cannot  save  myself. 
But  He,  He  can  and  will,  thanks  to  His  name  ; 
Thanks  to  thy  name,  Lord  Jesus,  I  am  thine, 
And  Thou  art  mine,  my  Savior  as  my  Lord ! 

'Where  is  my  pride,  which  was  so  dear  to  me, 
My  pride,  and  my  vain  confidence  of  strength  ? 
Gone,  yea,  and  my  desire  even  gone  to  be 
Myself  my  own  redeemer  and  not  owe 
Redemption  as  a  debt  of  gratitude 
To  any  ;  sense  of  debt  is  sweet  to  me 
Now,  and  my  heart  is  meekly  glad  to  know 
That  I  henceforth  am  not  my  own,  but  His 
Who  died  to  save  me  from  myself  and  sin. 
Nirvana,  which  I  erst  befooled  myself 
To  deem  desirable,  what  dreary  doom 
Were  it!     Instead  of  life,  and  love,  and  joy, 
True  peace,  and  ever-springing  gratitude 


555 


556 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX. 


Growing  greater  every  moment,  like  a  stream 

Increasing  every  moment  to  the  sea 

With  fresh  floods  from  fresh  tributaries  poured  — 

Instead  of  this,  blank  death  and  nothingness! 

End  unattainable,  I  now  can  see, 

Even  were  it  good.     To  lose  this  power  to  think 

And  suffer  and  enjoy,  to  quench  in  night 

Utter,  unending,  reason's  starry  lamp, 

And  hope's,  and  memory's,  and  be  naught  at  all ! 

I  shudder  backward  from  the  crumbling  brink 

Of  such  annihilation  of  myself 

Imagined  only,  and  I  eager  spring 

Endeavoring  upward  toward  that  different  good 

Assured  to  me  and  native  now  I  know, 

The  prospect  of  eternal  life  with  joy.' 

So  Krishna  mused,  was  grateful,  and  aspired, 
Rescued  from  the  abyss  to  hope  of  heaven. 

But  the  new  life  of  love  within  his  heart, 
Of  love  and  love's  delicious  gratitude, 
Swelled  with  sweet  pain  to  unappeasable 
Desire  of  vent  and  overflow  in  word 
Or  deed  to  testify    itself  abroad. 
When,  the  next  day,  the  daily  trysting-time 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  557 

Drew  them  that  loved  the  Lord  together  for  prayer, 
The  Indian,  who  by  fellow  instinct  now 
Divined  the  secret  of  those  gatherings,  came 
And  sought  to  be  admitted  of  the  band. 
They  welcomed  him  with  hospitable  joy, 
Which  borrowed  tears  from  sorrow  to  express 
Itself  in  silence  when  he  spoke  and  said  : 

"  O  friends,  receive  me,  for  I  am  of  you, 
Redeemed  by  your  Redeemer,  Christ  the  Lord. 
I  love  Him,  and  I  know  it  is  because 
He  first  loved  me  and  taught  me  how  to  love. 
This  love  that  wells  in  me  and  overflows 
My  being  thus,  it  is  not  mine  I  know, 
But  His,  or  only  as  He  makes  it,  mine. 
I  love  you  all  in  Him,  and  feel  that  ye 
In  Him  likewise  love  me.     He  has  unlocked 
The  gates  of  speech  ;  He  makes  the  dumb  to  speak. 
And  now  I  pray  you  tell  me,  is  there  not 
Some  thing  ye  know,  some  little  thing  perhaps, 
For  I  am  meek  and  lowly  like  a  child 
And  I  do  not  aspire  to  things  above 
My  measure,  which  indeed  I  know  is  small, 
Some  little  simple  thing  that  I  can  do 


558  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIX. 

For  Jesus,  just  because  He  wishes  it 

And  for  no  other  reason  in  the  world 

Than  only  that,  to  testify  to  Him 

In  act  and  testify  to  all  that  see 

How  much  I  love  Him,  and  how  much  desire 

To  be  henceforth  His  servant  all  in  all  ? 

I  should  be  glad  to  do  this  if  I  might 

With  no  delay  at  all,  I  am  in  haste. 

I  know  from  all  that  I  have  learned  through  you 

And  from  the  lovely  feeling  in  my  heart, 

This  eager  impulse  to  make  haste  and  be 

The  perfect  image  of  your  Lord  and  mine  — 

I  know  thus  that  there  is  an  endless  joy 

Before  me  of  obedience  to  His  will 

In  beautiful  behavior  like  His  own 

And  all  conformity  to  what  is  fair 

Whether  in  temper,  thought,  wish,  word,  or  deed, 

Or  whatsoever  else  is  life  or  being  — 

A  boundless  possibility  of  bliss 

Awaiting  and  inviting  me  —  whereto 

All  hail  and  welcome,  be  my  footsteps  fleet 

To  run  forever  up  this  shining  way!  — 

Yet  am  I  not  contented  till  I  hear 

Whether  there  be  not  bidden  some  thing  besides 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  559 

Of  gracious  privilege  from  Christ  to  those 
Who  love  Him  as  I  love  Him,  which  such  may, 
In  the  first  freshness  of  new  birth,  at  once 
Do  for  an  ease  and  comfort  to  their  love." 

Wonder  with  gladness  filled  all  hearts  that  heard, 
When  Krishna,  he  of  words  so  slow  and  few, 
Flowed  like  a  river  thus  from  frost  unbound. 
And  Paul  said  :  "  '  Be  baptized,'  Lord  Jesus  taught 
First  privilege  of  obedience  to  His  will 
In  outward  visible  act  offered  to  those 
Who  have  before  invisibly  obeyed 
Him  inwardly  and  taken  Him  for  Lord. 
Thou  therefore,  brother,  if  thou  wilt,  shalt  be 
Forthwith  baptized  according  to  His  word. 
Buried  with  Him  by  baptism  into  death 
Thou  wilt  be,  that  as  Christ  was  from  the  dead 
Raised  by  the  glory  of  the  Father  so 
Thou  also  mayst  henceforth  forever  walk 
In  a  new  life." 

Within  the  spacious  halls 
Of  Publius  there  was  found  a  laver  large 
Which,  by  the  master  of  the  mansion  put 
At  Paul's  command,  with  water  pure  was  filled; 


560  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XIX. 

And  therein  Krishna  was  straightway  baptized. 
But  not  by  Paul's  hands.     "  For   Christ  sent  me 

forth," 

He  said,  "  not  to  baptize  but  to  proclaim 
The  gospel  of  obedience  to  mankind." 
So  Aristarchus,  for  that  office  named 
By  Paul,  baptized  the  Indian.      He  went  down 
Joyous  into  that  liquid  grave  with  Christ 
To  rise  with  Him  in  resurrection  thence. 
"  Because  thou  art  disciple  now  become," 
To  Krishna  speaking,  Aristarchus  said, 
"  And  because  Christ  hath  so  commanded  us, 
Lo,  I  baptize  thee  thus  into  the  name, 
The  one  name,  of  the  Father,  of  the  Son, 
And  of  the  Holy  Ghost.     Amen  !  " 

-Amen!" 

Said  Krishna,  issuing  from  his  watery  tomb 
As  one  new-born  like  Lazarus  from  the  dead. 

"  If  thou,  then,"  Paul  said,  taking  Krishna's  hand 
For  welcome,  "  If  thou  be  indeed  with  Christ 
Risen  from  the  dead,  I  charge  thee  seek  those  things 
Which  are  above  where  Christ  ascended  sits 
On  the  right  hand  of  God  the  Father  throned. 


Book  XIX.         BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  561 

Endeavor  upward  toward  what  heavenly  is, 
Not  suffer  thine  affection  here  to  cling  ; 
We  must  not  grovel  where  we  ought  to  climb. 
Reckon  that  when  Christ   died  thou  diedst  with 

Him, 

And  that  thy  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God. 
When  Christ  our  life  shall  manifested  be, 
Then  manifested  thou  shalt  be  with  Him 
In  glory. 

"  For  this  life  we  live  on  earth 
Is  as  the  insect's  life  in  chrysalis. 
The  creature  shut  in  chrysalis  awaits 
The  promise  of  the  sun's  approach  in  spring; 
The  sun  is  his  true  life,  and  when  the  sun 
Returns  rejoicing  hither  from  the  south, 
Then  cracks  the  chrysalis  that  bound  him  in, 
And,  blossoming  out  in  wings,  he  disimprisoned 
Springs  a  new  creature  forth,  and  sails  abroad 
In  beauty  on  the  bosom  of  the  air  — 
A  living  parable  of  that  which  we 
Shall  undergo  of  glorious  change  when  Christ, 
Our  Sun,  at  His  return  revisits  us. 
Haste,  then,  to  put  to  death  those  things  in  thee, 


562  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIX. 

Pride,  unbelief,  self-will,  vain  trust  in  self, 

Excess  of  self-regard,  whatever  else 

Belongs  to  this  thine  earthly  state  of  being 

And  cannot  overlive  into  the  life 

Of  glory  to  be  thine  forever  in  heaven  — 

All  these  things  put  to  death,  and  nourish  rather 

Faith,  hope,  love,  joy,  upward  desire  and  pure, 

The  spirit  of  forgetfulness  of  self  — 

Self-will  become  obedience  unto  God, 

Presumption  changed  to  sweet  humility, 

Thanksgiving  like  a  fountain  from  the  heart 

Springing,  with  a  delicious    tremble  deep 

Reflected  to  the  center  of  the  soul, 

In  eager  exultation  up  to  God : 

These  and  like  things  are  of  the  heavenly  mind ; 

Cherish  them  thou  with  heedful  husbandry. 

So  shalt  thou  grow  full-summed  those  buoyant  wings 

Which,  when  Christ  comes  again,  shall  bear  thee  up 

To  meet  Him  in  the  air  and  soar  with  Him 

Immeasurable  heights  above  all  height 

Into  the  heaven  of  heavens  to  be  with  God 

Forever  and  forever  safe  in  bliss. 

"  Dost  thou  ask,  How  do  this  ?     I  answer  thee, 


Book  XIX.          BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA.  563 

Be  thy  whole  life  obedience  to  His  will 
Who  lived  and  died  and  lives  forevermore 
To  save  thee  ransomed  by  His  blood  from  sin. 
Yea,  whatsoever  thou  henceforth  shalt  do, 
Whether  in  thought  or  word  or  deed,  do  all 
Not  from  thyself,  nor  for  thyself,  but  all 
As  living  in  the  person  and  the  name, 
As  living  therein  only,  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  to  God  the  Father  giving  thanks 
By  Him. 

"And  now  to  Him  that  loved  us,  Him 
That  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  His  own  blood, 
And  made  us  kings  and  priests  to  God  His 

Father  — 

To  Him  dominion  be,  and  glory,  given 
For  ever  and  for  evermore  !     Amen  ! " 

Krishna  soon  after  came  to  Paul  and  said  : 
"  The  sense  of  resurrection  power  I  feel 
Within  me  working  to  sustain  my  will 
In  striving  upward  as  thou  bidst  toward  God 
I  take  it  as  a  warrant  and  a  proof 
That  Christ  lives  and  exerts  it  from  above. 
I  need  no  longer  any  testimony 


564  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XIX. 

Other  than  what  I  have  within  myself, 

That  He  rose  from  the  dead  to  die  no  more. 

This  new  life  that  is  mine  I  draw  from  Him  ; 

It  is  because  He  lives  I  thus  can  live  ; 

Yet  gladly  would  I  hear  from  Mary's  lips 

(Not  now  with  curious  ear,  and  unbelief) 

Her  story  of  the  rising  of  the  Lord. 

I  wake  not  seldom  in  the  depths  of  night, 

A  kind  of  leaven  of  light  breaks  through  my  sleep, 

As  if  the  glory  of  the  Lord  around 

Me  made  untimely  morning  for  mine  eyes. 

Better,  I  trow,  than  our  good  Publius, 

I  shall  peruse  the  daily  prophecies 

Of  weather  in  the  midnight  wind  and  sky. 

So  he  consents  and  I  beforehand  am 

With  him  in  waking,  as  I  trust  to  be, 

Let  me  bring  tidings  when  my  vigils  next 

Discern  the  promise  of  a  smiling  dawn 

Tempered  to  vernal  warmth.     We  then  can  meet, 

As  late  the  hint  was,  ere  the  rising  sun, 

To  hear  from  Mary,  while  the  morning  breaks 

And  the  fresh  splendors  of  new-wakened  day 

Lighten  the  world,  how  Jesus  over  death 

Triumphed,  and  spoiled  the  princedom  of  the  grave." 


Book  XIX.         BAPTISM  OF  KRISHNA. 

"So  it  shall  be,  my  Krishna,"  Paul  said,  glad 
At  heart  that  such  desire,  so  purified 
With  faith,  and  joy,  and  sense  of  partnership 
In  all  things  by  the  Lord  of  life  bestowed, 
Possessed  the  Indian.     And  the  days  went  by. 


BOOK    XX. 
EUTHANASY. 


Ruth  and  Mary  Magdalene  waking  very  early  talk  with 
one  another  having  not  yet  risen,  and  Mary  discloses  a  placid 
premonition  that  she  has  of  her  own  imminent  death.  They 
thus  engaged,  a  signal  sound  from  without  is  heard  in  notes 
from  Stephen  on  his  pipe.  The  summons  is  for  the  meeting 
proposed  to  hear  Mary's  story  of  the  resurrection. 

The  company  repair  to  a  hilltop  of  easy  access  and  goodly 
prospect,  where  after  a  matin  prayer  from  Paul  Mary  tells 
her  story.  She  has  scarcely  ended,  when  she  gently  sinks  in 
death.  Paul  on  occasion  of  this  speaks  comfortingly,  not 
without  tears  of  personal  sorrow  for  Mary's  loss,  of  the  resur 
rection  awaiting  the  dead  in  Christ. 

Meantime  Simon  the  sorcerer  having  observed  from  a 
distance  the  meeting  of  the  Christians  puts  his  own  sinister 
interpretation  on  what  occurred,  which,  so  interpreted,  he  re 
ports,  to  Paul's  disadvantage,  to  Felix  and  Drusilla,  with  sug 
gestion  of  use  that  may  be  made  of  it  in  evidence  against  the 
apostle  at  Rome. 

At  sunset  of  the  same  day  the  Christians  gather  to  the 
burial  of  Mary  on  the  spot  where  she  died,  and  Paul  describes 
the  promised  return  of  Jesus  to  accomplish  the  triumphant 
rapture  and  resurrection  of  the  saints. 


> 
tJISi  ! 


^CAl 

EUTHANASY. 

The  stars  that  with  the  setting  of  the  sun 
Rose  in  the  east  had  climbed  the  highest  heaven 
And  from  their  top  of  culmination  now 
With  steadfast  gaze  were  looking  steeply  down 
Through  spaces  pure,  or  lucid  depths  of  sky 
Pure  as  pure  spaces,  blanched  to  perfect  blue, 
When  Mary,  waking,  softly  spoke  to  Ruth. 
They  in  one  chamber  lodged,  and  were  so  nigh 
Each  other  in  their  couches  side  by  side 
(With  Rachel  also  in  close  neighborhood) 
That  they  could  trust  themselves  to  mutual  speech 
If  need  were  in  the  night  or  if  the  wish 
Prompted,  nor  hazard  to  disturb  the  rest 
Wherein  Eunice,  nigh  them  both  bestowed, 
Lay  locked  securely  in  those  faster  bonds 
Which  bind  the  young  and  innocent  asleep. 

"  Ruth,"  Mary  said,  so  softly  that  the  sound 
Was  like  a  pulse  of  silence,  "art  asleep?" 
"  Nay,  all  awake  to  hear  what  thou  wouldst  say," 
Ruth  answered,  in  a  murmur  soft  as  hers. 


570  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX. 

She  had  slept,  but  she  instantly  awoke 

When  Mary  scarcely  more  than  thought  her  name. 

This  was  the  wont  between  them  ;  for  Ruth  knew 
That  her  kinswoman  Mary  bore  her  life 
But  as  a  dewdrop  trembling  on  a  leaf 
That  any  little  waft  of  wind  may  scatter ; 
And  so  she  held  herself  even  when  she  slept 
Still  in  a  kind  of  vigil  not  to  miss 
A  breath  from  Mary  that  might  call  for  her. 

"  Thou  wilt  not  sorrow  should  I  leave  thee  soon," 
Said  Mary,  with  the  tone  of  one  who  soothed 
Far  rather  than  of  one  who  soothed  would  be. 
"  I  have  a  premonition  that  the  end 
To  me  of  things  upon  the  earth  is  nigh. 
Thou  knowest  how  frail  the  hold  whereby  I  hold 
To  life  here  and  how  ready  I  am  to  go 
Hence  whensoever  He  shall  call  my  name, 
As  once  He  called  it  I  remember  well, 
So  call  it  yet  again,  bidding  me  come. 
I  have  wavered  between  this  and  that  in  thought ; 
Now  thinking:  '  He  will  surely  hither  soon 
Return,  so  as  we  saw  Him  forty  days 
After  His  resurrection  wrapt  in  cloud 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY. 

Ascending  from  the  mount  in  Galilee  — 
Return,  and  take  us  all  unto  Himself ; ' 
But  then  again  I  think:  '  Perhaps  for  me 
He  will  anticipate  that  destined  hour 
And  call  me  on  a  sudden  thither  hence.' 
Let  not  mine  ear  be  heavy  if  He  call  ! 

"  O  Ruth,  I  think  I  have  within  my  heart 
Foretokening  sent  that  He  will  call  to-day  ; 
A  fluttering  in  my  blood  admonishes  me. 
I  should  be  thankful  if  I  might  once  more 
Ere  going  bear  some  witness  to  His  name  ! 
For  Krishna's  sake,  too  ;  ever  a  soul  sincere 
He  seemed  to  me,  but  he  would  listen  now 
With  other  ear,  eager  to  drink  the  truth." 
14  Yea,  and  that  may  be,"   Ruth  said,  "not  once 

more 

But  often  if  the  will  of  God  be  so. 
God  grant  it !     For  indeed  I  could  but  grieve 
To  lose  thee  from  my  side  ;  grieve,  though  I  saw 
Heaven  open  to  receive  thee,  as  to  Stephen, 
My  Stephen,  it  opened  —  with  the  glory  of  God 
Full  shown  Him  in  the  face  of  Christ  the  Lord  ! 

"  Yet  so  the  weather  promises  this  night 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX 

The  morning  will,  I  think,  be  heavenly  fair 
And  mild,  and  haply  thou  indeed  shalt  greet 
Full  soon  thy  wished-for  chance  of  testimony. 
Thou  wilt  remember  we  were  all  to  meet 
On  such  a  morning  as  this  sure  will  be 
And  hear  thee  tell  thy  story  of  the  Lord's 
Victorious  resurrection  from  the  dead 
Just  then  when  day  is  glorying  over  night." 

V 

Those  women  with  each  other  communing  so, 
The  morning  hastened,  and  —  now  nigh  to  break 
Full  splendor  but  with  brilliance  soft  and  chaste 
Over  the  welcoming  world  both  land  and  sea  — 
Mary  and  Ruth,  with  Rachel  at  the  sign 
Awakening  and  Eunice  fresh  as  dawn,  ' 

Heard  from  without  a  matin  signal  sound 
Blown  with  the  breath  of  Stephen  on  his  reed  — 
Token  of  tryst  by  all  well  understood, 
While  secretly  entrusted  with  a  thrill 
To  one  heart  that  the  others  knew  not  of. 

The  Indian  joyful  to  his  host  had  said  : 
"  I  shall  forestall  thee,  O  my  Publius, 
I  know  it  by  my  heart  within  me  wise, 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  573 

In  hailing  the  selectest  dawn  to  break, 
And  fittest,  for  our  meeting  on  the  shore 
To  hear  from  Hebrew  Mary  what  she  yet 
Reserves  to  tell  us  of  her  rising  Lord  : 
So,  if  thou  please,  I  will  myself  betimes 
Awake  thee  when  the  hour  I  wait  for  comes." 
Publius  thus  roused,  he  in  his  turn  awaked 
Stephen,  who  rallied  with  his  pipe  the  rest ; 
But  Paul,  with  Stephen  in  one  chamber  sleeping 
Woke,  as  his  nephew  woke,  when  Publius  called. 

The  new  wine    of  the  vernal  weather  filled 
The  golden  cup  of  morning  to  the  brim, 
And   those  blithe  wakers  drank  deep  draughts 

\i  it ; 

But  other  morning  bathed  their  souls  with  light. 
They  to  a  hill  of  gentle  rise  repaired 
That  sloped  its  eastern  side  into  the  main 
Thence  rippling  up  in  spiral  terraces 
By  playful  Nature  round  about  it  wound  : 
Here  goodly  prospect  over  sea  and  shore, 
From  a  well-sheltered  seat,  invited  them*. 
Before  they  sat,  Paul  stretched  his  hands  toward 
heaven 


574 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XX. 


And  prayed :  "  Thou  who  didst  out  of  darkness 

make 

Light  dawn  on  chaos,  and  who  day  by  day 
Dost  kindle  morning  from  the  shades  of  night, 
Thanks  to  thy  name  for  this  fair  spring  of  dawn  ! 
Dawn  Thou  into  our  hearts,  and  dayspring  there 
Make  with  the  shining  of  thy  face  on  us 
Shown  milder  in  the  face  of  Christ  thy  Son  !  " — • 
Then,  to  his  fellows  turning,  added  this : 
"  We  owe  it  to  Krishna  that  we  thus  are  here ; 
His  wishes  waked  him,  and,  as  was  agreed, 
He  waked  us  that  we  might  prevent  the  morn 
To  celebrate  the  rising  of  the  Lord. 
Krishna  knew  not,  what  yet  by  happy  chance 
Has  now  befallen,  if  aught  befall  by  chance, 
That  we,  upon  the  first  day  of  the  week 
Meeting,  meet  on  the  day  when  Christ  arose, 
The  Lord's  day,  day  peculiarly  His  own. 
We  listen,  Mary,  tell  us'of  that  morn." 

Then  Mary,  Jier  fair  face  like  morning,  white 
With  pureness  not  with  pallor,  spoke  and  said : 
"  It  was  not  hope,  nor  faith  —  both  faith  and  hope 
Had  died  within  us  when  our  Master  died  — 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY. 


575 


Not  hope,  not  faith,  but  love,  and  memory, 

And  sorrow,  and  desire  to  testify 

Our  sense  of  everlasting  debt  to  Him, 

That,  early  in  the  morning  of  the  day 

Third  following  the  day  wherein  He  suffered, 

Brought  me  —  with  Mary,  James's  mother,  joined - 

Likewise  Salome,  to  the  garden  where 

They  had  laid  Him  in  a  rock-hewn  sepulcher. 

We  took  sweet  spices  to  embalm  the  flesh 

Which  late  for  robe  the  Lord  of  life  had  worn. 

We  wondered  as  we  went,  '  But  who  will  roll 

The  great  stone  back  for  us  that  closes  up 

The  doorway  to  the  tomb  ? '     Yet  went  we  on, 

To  find  the  stone  already  rolled  away ; 

For  there  had  been  a  mighty  earthquake  throe, 

And  a  descended  angel  of  the  Lord 

With  easy  strength  in  his  celestial  grace 

Had  rolled  away  the  stone,  and  on  it  sat. 

His  aspect  was  like  lightning,  and  snow-white 

His  dazzling  vesture  shone.     The  keepers  shook, 

The  keepers  that  the  Jewish  rulers  set 

To  watch  the  grave — these  for  sheer  terror  shook 

And  sank  into  a  helpless  swoon  like  death. 

But  unto  us  that  awful  angel  said : 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX. 

"Ye,  fear  not ;  for  I  know  ye  come  to  seek 
Jesus  the  crucified  ;  He  is  not  here, 
For  He  is  risen  according  to  His  word. 
Come,  see  the  empty  place  where  the  Lord  lay." 

"  I  heard  and  saw  with  a  bewildered  wit ; 
And  though  I  afterward  remembered  all, 
I  did  not  at  the  moment  understand 
Well  anything  save  that  the  sepulcher 
Was  empty  of  the  body  of  the  Lord. 
This  I  told  the  disciples,  sorrowing  : 
I  ran  to  tell  them,  and  they,  running,  came 
To  find  it  so  as  I  had  made  report. 

Those  went  away,  perplexed  and  sad  at  heart : 

i 

But  as  for  me,  I  lingered  by  the  tomb 

And  wept ;  I  could  have  wept  my  heart  away. 

I  thought:  'And  so  I  may  not  even  anoint  — 

There  would  be  comfort,  something  like  a  sense 

Of  healing  to  that  holy  wounded  flesh, 

If  I  might  salve  those  dead  wounds  with   sweet 

spice  - 

I  may  not  even  anoint  His  body  dead  ! 
They  have  taken  it  away,  I  know  not  whither. 
Alas,  alas,  and  woe  is  me  ! '     My  tears 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  577 

Were  falling  like  a  shower  of  rain  the  while, 

But  I  stooped  weeping,  and  with  veiled  eyes  looked 

Into  the  open  sepulcher  and  saw 

Two  angels  sitting  there,  vested  in  white, 

One  at  the  head,  the  other  at  the  feet, 

Where  late  the  body  of  the  Lord  had  lain. 

"  It  was  a  heavenly  spectacle  to  see, 
Those  shining-vested  angels  sitting  there 
With  posture  so  composed  and  face  serene ! 
Yet  would  I  rather  then  have  seen  the  Lord, 
Or  seen  His  body  wounded  from  the  cross  ; 
But  if  those  angels  knew  that  this  was  so, 
Their  blame  of  me  was  very  gently  spoken  : 
'Woman,  why  weepest  thou  ?'     I  sobbed  reply  : 
1  Because  they  have  taken  away  my  Lord,  and  where 
They  have  laid  Him  I  know  not/ 

"  With  that  I  turned 

Me  back,  I  think  I  should  have  gone  away, 
But  I  saw  one  I  knew  not,  standing  there, 
Who  also  spake,  '  Woman,  why  weepest  thou  ? ' 
Distraught  I  took  him  for  the  gardener, 
And  half  I  did  not  see  him  for  my  tears, 
And  I  made  answer  from  my  eager  thought : 


578  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XX. 

'  O,  sir,  if  thou  have  borne  Him  hence,  tell  me 
Where  thou  hast  laid  Him  and  I  will  take  Him 

thence 

Away.'     Then  Jesus,  for  it  Jesus  was, 
Uttered  one  word,  no  more  ;  '  Mary  ! '   He  said. 
I  turned  toward  Him,  but  all  I  said  was  this  : 
'  Rabboni ! '     For  it  was  a  Hebrew  word 
Sprang  quickest  to  my  lips;  '  Master'  it  means  — " 
This  with  a  glance  toward  Krishna  Mary  said. 

The  Indian  dropped  his  eyes  as  with  a  kind 
Of  sudden  conscious  shame  confusing  him 
To  feel  her  eyes  that  instant  meet  his  own 
And  know  his  own  were  charged  with  other  look 
Than  ever  woman  drew  from  him  before. 
In  her  unconscious  pure  serenity, 
Mary  —  her  momentary  glance  toward  one, 
In  equal  gaze  on  all  together  sheathed  — 
Went  on,  no  pause,  yet  with  some  air  of  muse 
Tingeing  her  reminiscence  as  she  said  : 
"  Perhaps  I  had  an  impulse  which  the  Lord 
Saw,  to  assure  myself  with  touch  of  hand 
Or  even  to  cling  to  Him,  I  hardly  know ; 
'  Nay,'  He  said  tenderly,  '  I  am  not  yet,' 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY. 

Said  He,  'ascended  to  the  Father;  them, 
Go  to  my  brethren  and  tell  them  that  I 
Ascend  unto  my  Father  and  your  Father 
And  my  God  and  your  God.'     And  this  I  did. 

"  O,  the  deep  joy,  the  deep  and  solemn  joy, 
Of  knowing  that  the  Lord  was  risen  indeed  ! 
And  the  solemnity  was  almost  more 
Than  even  the  joy  ;  we  trembled  and  rejoiced. 
He  was  so  awful  in  His  majesty 
After  His  rising  from  the  dead  !     Yea,  sweet 
Was  He,  beyond  all  language  to  express  ; 
But  sweetness  was  with  awfulness  In  Him 
So  qualified,  the  sweetness  could  not  be 
Enough  to  overcome  the  awfulness  ; 
Gazing  on  Him  we  trembled  and  rejoiced. 

"  He  forty  days  appeared  and  disappeared 
By  turns  before  us,  passing  through  shut  doors 
Unhindered,  yet  sometimes  partaking  food- 
A  paradox  of  spirit  or  of  flesh, 
The  resurrection  body  of  the  Lord  ! 
Ensample  of  our  bodies  that  shall  be, 
And  witness  of  the  wondrous  wisdom  God's, 
And  power  to  work  the  counsels  of  His  will 


579 


580  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XX. 

By  many  secret  potencies  of  things, 

Who  spirit  of  matter  could  capacious  make, 

As  matter  make  to  spirit  permeable  ! 

"  Those  forty  days  in  which  He  showed  Himself 
After  such  fashion  to  His  chosen  few 
Nigh  ended,  we  withdrew  to  Galilee 
Where  He  appointed  He  would  meet  His  own  — 
More  than  five  hundred  we  were  mustered  there 
Upon  a  mountain  top  that  well  we  knew. 
Here  He  was  glorious  in  majesty, 
The  Son  of  God  become  from  Son  of  Man  ; 
Hushed  to  obedient  awe,  we  heard  Him  speak. 
He  said  :  '  Lo,  all  authority  is  given 
To  Me,  whether  in  heaven  or  on  the  earth. 
Forth,  therefore,  ye,  among  all  nations  go, 
Making  disciples  and  baptizing  them 
Into  the  name,  the  one  name,  of  the  Father, 
And  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost ; 
Teaching  them  to  observe  all  things  that  I 
Commanded  you,  neglecting  naught  of  all  : 
Behold,  I  am  with  you  ever  to  the  end.' 

"  Thence  to  Jerusalem  and  Bethany. 
Here  from  a  chosen  spot  on  Olivet 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  581 

Jesus,  His  hands  uplifted  as  He  blessed  us, 

Rose  heavenward,  but  He  blessed  us  still  in  rising, 

Until  a  cloud  enwrapt  Him  from  our  sight." 

The  upward  look  of  Mary  saying  this, 
Her  fixed,  eager,  upward-yearning  look, 
Failed,  and  her  face  grew  white  as  if  the  blood 
Were  shamed  to  stain  that  heavenly  purity. 
All  saw  the  change  she  suffered,  and  were  awed. 
Mary's  voice  faltered,  but  she  brokenly 
Went  on  in  utterance  such  as  if  she  spoke 
Out  of  another  world  just  reached  from  this : 
"That  cloud  —  I  seem  to  see  it  now  again - 
Or  something  swims  between  to  dim  my  sight. 
Those  angels  said  that  He  would  yet  return     \^* 
So  as  we  saw  Him  then  ascend  to  heaven  — 
Is  He  now  come  ?     I  hear  as  if  a  voice, 
His,  His,  the  same  that  in  the  garden  spake 
To  me  calling  my  name,  '  Mary ! '   It  says 
Now,  'Hither,  Mary!'     Yea,  Lord  Jesus,  I 
Know  Thee,  and  come.     At  last !  At  last !  Fare 
well  !" 

Mary  such  words  uttered  with  failing  breath, 
Her  eyes  withdrawn  from  vision  of  things  here. 


582  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX. 

Her  body  —  which  in  gentle  rest  reclined 

On  her  kinswoman  Ruth  supporting  her 

When  her  strength  failed  —  she  left,  winging  her  way 

Hence,  as  the  lark  soars  from  his  groundling  nest 

Into  the  morning  sky  to  meet  the  sun. 

With  a  communicated  quietude 
Of  spirit  —  which  into  their  gesture  passed 
Making  it  seem  habitual,  no  surprise, 
Scarce  sorrow,  hinted,  perturbation  none, 
But  reverence  and  love  ineffable  — 
Not  speaking,  Ruth  and  Rachel  decently 
Composed  the  body  to  a  look  of  rest 
In  sleep  on  the  sweet  earth,  the  stainless  sky 
Bending  in  benediction  over  her 
And  the  bright  sun  just  risen  touching  the  face 
To  an  auroral  beauty  with  his  beams. 

"  She  has  gone  hence,"  Paul  said,   "to  be  with 

Christ, 

Which  is  far  better.     See  the  peace  expressed 
In  the  unmoving  hands  on  the  stilled  heart, 
The  form  relapsed  oblivious  on  the  ground, 
And  the  face  fixed  in  transport  of  repose  ! 
Surpassing  beauty  !     But  corruptible ; 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  583 

Faint  image  of  the  beauty  which  shall  be 

When  this  seed  planted  springs  in  heavenly  bloom 

And  mortal  takes  on  immortality  ! 

Think  when  we  sow  this  beauty  in  the  dust, 

That  which  we  sow  is  earthly  though  so  fair  ; 

But  that  will  be  celestial  which  shall  hence 

In  the  bright  resurrection  season  spring. 

> 

"  Ye  know  that  when  the  husbandman  entrusts 
His  seed-grain  to  the  soil  he  does  not  sow 
That  body  which  shall  be,  but  kernels  bare 
To  which  God  gives  a  body  as  He  will ; 
From  the  wheat  sown  there  springs  a  blade  of  green 
Unlike  the  wheat  and  far  more  beautiful. 
So  is  the  resurrection  that  awaits 
Mary,  our  sister  ;  this  corruptible 
Will  put  on  incorruption  in  that  day, 
And  Christ  will  fashion  it  anew  more  fair, 
After  the  body  of  His  glory  changed  ! 

"  Ye  do  not  ask,  but  some  have  doubting  asked, 
'  How  are  the  dead  raised  up,  and  in  what  form 
Of  body  do  they  come?'     Not  surely  such 
As  they  within  the  tomb  were  laid  away. 
There  sleeps  a  natural  body  in  the  dust; 


584  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  B°ok  XX. 

There  wakes  a  spiritual  body  purified 
From  every  imperfection  of  the  flesh. 
Whatever  glorious  beauty  here  was  worn 
Is  worn  a  changed  more  glorious  beauty  there. 

"  His  proper  glory^to  the  sun  belongs, 
And  the  moon  has  her  glory,  and  the  stars 
Each  in  his  own  peculiar  glory  shines  : 
The  body  of  the  resurrection  so 
Has  its  enduements  proper  to  itself, 
Capacities,  adjustments,  attributes, 
Other  than  we  know  here  —  though  shadowed  forth 
Obscurely  in  the  body  that  the  Lord 
After  His  resurrection  wore  —  such  high 
Transfigurations  of  the  faculties 
Belonging  to  the  body  of  this  flesh 
As  man's  imagination  cannot  dream  ! 

"  O  clay,  that  late  seemed  Mary  !  "  —and  therewith 
The  tears  that  would  not  longer  be  stayed  back 
Burst  from  Paul's  eyes  and  fell  a  sunlit  shower, 
While  all  the  rest  beholding  wept  with  Paul  — 
"  Form,  for  her  sake,  our  well-beloved,  dear, 
Must  we  then  leave  thee  in  the  dust  of  earth  ? 
But  not  as  thus  we  leave  thee  wilt  thou  rise ! 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  585 

Thou  in  corruption  wilt  lie  waiting  here, 
But  thou  shalt  rise,  to  incorruption  changed  ; 
Thou  wilt  sleep  darkling  underneath  the  clod, 
But  thence  in  glory  shalt  thou  waking  burst ;    ' 
In  weakness  buried,  thou  shalt,  rise  iri  power. 
Mary  the  image  of  the  earthy  bore, 
She  shall  the  image  of  the  heavenly  bear  : 
Comfort  yourselves,  beloved,  with  such  hope." 

Paul  these  triumphal  words  of  prophecy 
Uttered  with  streaming  tears  that  testified 
The  sorrow  in  him  at  the  heart  of  joy ; 
And  they  all  wept  with  Paul,  in  fellowship 
Of  pathos  at  sweet  strife  with  glorying  hope. 

A  little  leave  for  silent  tears,  and  Paul 
Said  :  "  Bide  ye  here  until  the  evenfall, 
Or  some  of  you  by  turns  as  need  of  rest, 
Of  food,  of  change,  allows  the  privilege 
Of  watching  by  this  sacred  dust  asleep. 
I  will  meantime  desire  from  Publius 
Permission  to  prepare  her  resting-place 
For  Mary  here  upon  the  self-same  spot 
That  she  has  hallowed  for  us  by  dying  here  ; 
And  we  at  set  of  sun  will  bury  her." 


586  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XX. 

Now  Publius  had,  with  Sergius  Paulus  too, 
And  Krishna  —  those,  and  the  centurion— 
Silently,  in  that  silent  time  of  tears, 
Retired ;  they  with  one  instinct  felt  that  here 
Were  love  and  grief  that  needed  privacy 
From  witness  even  of  moistened  eyes  like  theirs. 
But  Krishna  went  apart  from  all,  and  bowed 
Himself  together  motionless  and  wept. 

While  those  sat  weeping,  and  these  last  withdrew 
Refraining  not  the  sympathetic  tear, 
A  different  scene  passed  elsewhere  in  the  isle. 
Simon,  the  sorcerer,  sought  and  found  access 
To  Felix  and  Drusilla  and  said  to  them  : 
"  I  roused  this  night  an  hour  before  the  dawn, 
My  sleep  disturbed  with  signs  in  dreams  of  you. 
Some  secret  prescience  urged  me  out  of  doors, 
And  I  went  wandering  forth  with  no  clear  thought 
Whither,  but  felt  my  footsteps  onward  drawn, 
Until  I  gained  an  overlooking  height 
Of  hill,  whence,  ranging  round  me  with  mine  eyes, 
I  saw  a  dozen  people  more  or  less, 
Women  as  seemed  with  men,  a  motley  train, 
Walking  thus  early,  why  I  could  not  guess  ; 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  587 

They  tended  toward  a  hillock  neighboring  mine. 

I,  heeding  to  be  hid  from  them  the  while, 

Crept  up  as  near  them  as  I  safely  could. 

Paul  was  among  them,  chief,  though  not  the  guide* 

As  guide  our  worthy  friend  Sir  Publius  served. 

That  Sergius  Paulus,  with  his  Indian  friend, 

Krishna  they  call  him,  the  centurion  too, 

Were  of  the  company ;  as  for  the  rest, 

Count  up  the  tale  of  Paul's  companionship, 

They  were  all  there. 

"After  these  reached  the  point 
Where  they  made  pause,  the  first  thing  that  befell 
Was  Paul  in  menace  lifting  up  those  hands 
Of  his  and  therewith  muttering  magic  words. 
I  could  not  hear  them,  but  the  tone  I  knew, 
As  too  I  knew  that  gesture  of  the  hands. 
I  thought  of  how  he  conjured  with  his  spell 
Of  uncouth  baleful  words  at  Caesarea  ! 
Paul  got  all  seated ;  but  one  sat  apart, 
The  destined  victim  of  his  wicked  wiles, 
A  woman  she,  that  Mary  Magdalene, 
Like  an  accused  impaled  to  make  defence. 
Paul  seemed  to  say  to  her,  '  Speak,  if  thou  wilt,' 


588  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XX 

Whereon  the  woman  with  a  pleading  voice, 
But  hopeless,  breaking  into  moan  at  last, 
Made  her  apology  —  of  course  in  vain. 
The  spell  that  Paul  had  cast  upon  her  wrought, 
And  she  sank  lifeless  at  his  feet.     So  once 
A  spell  from  Peter  at  Jerusalem 
With  Ananias  and  Sapphira  wrought 
Killing  them  out  of  hand." 

"  But  wherefore  this?" 
Drusilla  doubted.     "Also  wherefore  that?" 

"  Real  reason,  or  pretended,  wilt  thou  have  ?  " 
Said  Simon  with  his  air  of  oracle. 
"  Both,"  said  Drusilla  shortly,  answering  him. 
"  Well,  the  pretended  reason,"  Simon  said, 
"  To  Peter,  was  hot  zeal  for  righteousness. 
Seems  Ananias  and  Sapphira  lied ; 
A  venial  lie,  they  set  a  little  short 
The  price  they  had  received  for  certain  lands 
Or  other  property  sold  by  them  late 
In  the  behoof  of  Peter  and  his  crew. 
Peter  would  none  of  that ;  the  revenues 
To  be  extorted  from  his  dupes  would  shrink 


Book  XX  EUTHANASY.  589 

With  such  prevarications  once  in  vogue  : 
There  hast  thou  the  real  reason  for  his  crime. 


"  As  for  this  last  case,  Paul's,  I  can  but  guess 
What  his  pretended  reason  was.     Indeed 
Perhaps  pretended  reason  there  was  none. 
It  may  be  he  preferred  to  have  it  seem, 
To  all  except  his  special  followers, 
A  case  of  sudden  death  from  natural  cause. 
Or  again,  likelier,  he  alleged  some  crime 
Against  her,  sacrilege  or  blasphemy, 
Secret,  thence  lacking  proof  but  capable 
Of  being  proved  upon  her  by  his  art. 
He  would  pronounce  a  spell  of  magic  power, 
Then  let  her  talk  and  try  to  clear  herself  : 
Meanwhile,  if  she  were  guilty  as  he  thought, 
The  spell  would  work  and  punish  her  with  death, 
But  remain  harmless  were  she  innocent. 
Guesses,  but  plausible  ;  still  it  would  be 
Sufficiently  like  Paul  if  he  devised 
A  blank  mere  demonstration  for  the  sake 
Of  those  outside  spectators  of  the  scene, 
Simply  in  order  to  impress  on  them 
His  power  in  magic,  and  win  their  applause. 


590  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX. 

It  would  at  the  same  time  inspire  with  awe 

Those  dupes  of  his,  and  faster  bind  their  bonds. 

Yet  a  particular  reason  intermixed 

Doubtless  with  general  motives  for  his  crime ; 

Some  insubordination,  it  may  be, 

On  Mary  Magdalene's  part  toward  him, 

Had  stung  him  to  inflict  this  punishment." 

"What  of  it  all?"   Drusilla  coldly  said. 
"  Nothing,"  said  Simon  ;  "just  a  pretty  tale! 
Only  I  thought  it  might  perhaps  subserve 
Lady  Drusilla's  purpose  yonder  at  Rome, 
To  have  a  crime  convenient  to  her  hand, 
A  fresh  crime,  and  a  flagrant,  she  could  charge 
To  Paul's  account  to  make  more  sure  his  doom." 

'Why,  aye,'  Drusilla  thought,  'one  that  involves 
Sergius  Paulus,  renegade,  and  that 
Too  complaisant  centurion,  the  whole  crew 
Indeed  present  to  be  spectators  there 
And  not  protesting,  hence  accomplices 
All  of  a  crime  they  might  have  stayed  in  act. 
As  to  the  matter  of  a  sudden  death 
With  circumstance  attending  such  and  such, 
Surplus  of  testimony  was  to  hand 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  591 

For  that ;  as  to  the  matter  of  the  means 
Employed,  magic  —  Simon  magician  was, 
And  he,  as  expert  witness,  should  suffice. 
If  any  question  as  to  him  arose, 
Drusilla  should  be  equal  to  the  need  ; 
/  would  vouch  for  him  to  the  emperor. 
Nothing  would  please  me  better  than  to  try 
On  him  the  virtue  of  my  sponsorship  ! ' 

So  the  proud  woman  swiftly  in  mute  muse 
Slid  to  the  goal  she  wished.     Nay,  scarce  a  pause 
Seeming  to  have  occurred  before  she  spoke, 
Already  had  her  formless  thought  forecast 
The  triumphs  over  Nero  she  would  win 
With  her  voluptuous  beauty  wielded  so 
As  she  could  wield  it  through  her  equal  wit, 
When  she  to  Simon  answered  absently  : 
"  True,  worthy  Simon  ;  something  such  might 

chance  ; 

Be  ready  to  make  good  at  need  thy  part." 
This  as  dismissal ;  and  the  sorcerer  went. 
Felix  had  moody  sat  with  never  a  word. 

And  now  the  cloudless  splendor  of  the  day 
Was  softly  toward  a  cloudless  sunset  waned, 


592  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX. 

When  round  an  open  grave  upon  that  hill 

Were  gathered  those  who  mourned  for  Mary  dead; 

Publius  was  there,  and  Julius,  with  the  rest. 

They  with  all  reverence  lifted  the  fair  form, 

Wrapped  round  about  with  linen  clean  and  white, 

And  laid  it  like  a  seed  within  the  ground  ; 

They  spread  it  with  a  coverlet  of  soil 

Which  falling  through  the  farewell  sunset  beams 

Seemed  leavened  to  lie  more  lightly  on  the  dead : 

The  earth  with  such  a  treasure  in  her  breast 

Was  sweeter,  and  they  almost  yearned  toward  it. 

Yet  upward  rather  soon  they  turn  their  eyes 

As  once  those  upward  gazed  in  Galilee 

Seeing  their  Lord  ascend  in  cloud  to  heaven  — 

While  thus  Paul,  he  too  thither  looking,  said  : 

"  Concerning  her  who  sleeps  here,  think  aright ; 

For  we  must  sorrow  not  as  others  do 

Who  have  no  hope.     We  have  a  hope.     Our  hope 

Is,  that  if  Jesus  died  and  rose  again, 

Even  so  them  likewise  who  in  Jesus  sleep 

Will  God  bring  with  Him.     Yea,  I  say  to  you 

By  the  command  and  promise  of  the  Lord 

If  we  survive  to  see  the  Lord  return 

We  shall  not  so  forestall  our  sleeping  friend 


Book  XX.  EUTHANASY.  593 

In  springing  toward  Him  as  He  hither  comes. 

For  with  a  shout  the  Lord  Himself  from  heaven 

Will  hither  come  descending  with  the  voice 

Of  the  archangel  and  the  trump  of  God. 

First  shall  those  de?d  in  Christ  arise,  and  then 

We,  if  we  linger  living  till  He  come, 

(Transfigured  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye 

When  the  trump  sounded  to  our  heavenly  guise) 

Will  be  with  them  together  in  the  clouds 

Caught  up  in  instant  rapture  from  the  earth 

To  meet  the  Lord  descended  in  the  air : 

So  shall  we  be  forever  with  the  Lord. 

With  these  things  comfort  ye  yourselves,  and  each 

Comfort  the  other. 

"And  all  comfort  me  !  " 

Paul  added,  with  a  breaking  voice,  and  tears ; 
But  quick  he  rallied  for  those  others'  sake 
And  his  victorious  tone  recovered  quite, 
Looking  down,  like  a  warrior  on  a  foe 
Trampled  into  the  dust  beneath  his  feet  — 
So  looking  down  upon  that  vanquished  grave, 
Paul  almost  chanted  in  heroic  rhythm 
This  lyric  exultation  calmed  to  praise : 


594  ?HE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XX 


"  O  death,  where  is  thy  sting?     Thy  victory  where, 

O  grave  ?     Thanks  be  to  God  who  giveth  us, 
* 

Through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  victory!" 

Paul  indeed  craved  the  touch  of  human  love, 
To  stay  him  with  a  healing  sense  of  help, 
And  medicine  to  sorrow  ;  but  in  part 
It  was  for  his  companions'  own  behoof 
He  had  desired  their  fellowship  of  cheer; 
He  knew  well  that  to  comfort  was  of  all 
Ways  the  way  surest  to  be  comforted. 


BOOK    XXI 
ARRIVAL. 


The  day  following,  the  shipwrecked  company  embark  on 
a  vessel  that  had  wintered  at  Melita  and  sail  for  Puteoli. 
The  islanders  give  Paul  and  his  companions  a  grateful  fare 
well  of  good  wishes  and  of  presents  for  their  cheer.  With 
Felix  and  Drusilla  goes  as  a  fresh  addition  to  their  train  a 
Phrygian  runaway  slave  whom  Syrus,  a  young  slave  of  Felix's, 
has  befriended  and  has  devised  thus  to  get  safely  to  Rome. 
Stephen  is  made  confidant  of  this  plan,  and  becoming  inter 
ested  in  the  runaway  introduces  him  to  Paul.  The  foot  jour 
ney  from  Puteoli  to  Rome  is  accomplished,  the  approach  to 
that  city  being  made  along  the  Appian  Way.  Various  reflec 
tions  are  inspired  in  Paul  by  this  experience  and  by  the  sight 
of  the  metropolis  itself.  At  Rome,  the  Phrygian  runaway 
slave  goes  to  Paul's  quarters,  merged  in  the  daily  concourse 
that  throngs  thither  to  hear  the  gospel.  Having  been  con 
verted,  he  is  encouraged  by  Paul  to  return  to  his  master. 
This  he  finally  does,  carrying  with  him  a  letter  from  Paul. 
The  result  is,  that  the  slave  at  the  wish  of  the  master  comes 
joyfully  back  to  Rome  and  devotes  himself  to  the  loving  ser 
vice  of  Paul. 


ARRIVAL. 

A  trireme  that  had  wintered  in  the  isle  — 
By  stress  of  weather  hindered  in  her  way 
From  Egypt  to  the  shores  of  Italy - 
Refitted  now  was  ready  to  pursue 
Her  destined  voyage  to  Puteoli. 
The  master's  thought  had  been  to  put  to  sea 
That  self-same  day  whose  beamy  morn  beheld 
The  meeting  on  the  hill  in  Melita; 
But  the  centurion  intervened  to  bid 
Delay  the  sailing  yet  another  day  : 
His  mind  was  with  his  prisoners  to  embark 
Himself  on  that  Egyptian  ship  for  Rome  ; 
And,  partly  out  of  kindly  complaisance 
Toward  Paul,  and  partly  from  a  sympathy 
Unconscious,  or  ashamed  and  unconfessed 
Of  interest  in  the  tale  that  Mary  told, 
He  would  not  let  the  purposes  he  knew 
Engaged  the  Christians  for  that  morn  be  crossed, 

The  morrow  morn  full  early  they  put  forth 
On  a  smooth  sea  beneath  a  smiling  sky. 


598  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXI. 

A  concourse  of  the  grateful  islanders 
Flowed  to  the  quay  with  signals  of  farewell 
And  blessing  and  with  honors  manifold 
Lavished  on  Paul  and  for  Paul's  sake  on  them 
That  with  him  sailed  ;  nor  only  eager  words 
Brought  they  and  tears  of  reverence  and  of  love, 
But  bounty  in  unbounded  store  of  all 
Things  needful  to  sustain  those  travellers'  cheer. 

So,  sail  and  oar,  they  steered  for  S).acuse  ; 
There  for  three  days  they  tarried,  and  thence  north 
Warping  their  way  in  variance  with  the  wind 
Touched  Rhegium  where  another  day  they  bide. 
Then,  the  south  blowing,  they  once  more  set  sail 
And  the  next  day  attained  Puteoli. 

Of  those  who  sailed  on  that  good  ship  for  Rome 
Were  Felix  and  Drusilla  with  their  train  ; 
And  their  train  was,  by  one  addition,  more 
Than  when  the  shipwreck  cast  them  on  the  isle. 
This  was  a  slave,  a  Phrygian  runaway, 
Out  of  Colossae  strayed  to  Melita 
But  in  his  wish  and  purpose  aimed  for  Rome  : 
He  should  be  safely  lost  in  multitude 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  599 

Drowned  in  the  depths  of  that  metropolis. 

The  shifty  Syrus,  fond  of  his  device, 

And  not  without  true  kindness  in  his  heart, 

Meeting  the  fugitive  had  befriended  him. 

Onesimus  —  such  name  the  bondman  bore  — 

He  wisely  warned  that,  wandering  unattached 

And  destitute  (for  spent  long  since  was  all 

He  had  in  starting  from  his  lord  purloined), 

He  advertised  himself  for  what  he  was, 

A  vagrant  sMve,  and  ran  a  needless  risk. 

"  Attach  thyself,"  said  Syrus,  "  to  the  train 

Of  my  lord  Felix ;   I  will  manage  it 

He  shall  receive  thee  ;  he  delights  in  pomp 

And  show  as  does  Drusilla  too  his  spouse, 

And  they  would  gladly  swell  their  retinue 

With  one  head  more  to  make  them  great  at  Rome. 

This  gets  thee  thither  whither  thou  wouldst  go  ; 

Once  there,  thou  quittest  at  thine  own  good  will 

Thy  dear  adoptive  master's  service  —  no 

Exchanges  of  farewells  betwixt  you  twain - 

And  hast  thy  freedom,  safe  of  course  from  him, 

Lord  Felix,  who  will  have  no  claim  on  thee, 

And  well  removed  from  fear  of  thine  own  lord," 

He  added  in  pathetic  humor  half : 


6oo  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXI. 

"  Remember  Syrus  when  thou  art  thine  own 
And  hast  perhaps  some  small  peculium  gained, 
And  in  turn  help  who  freely  now  helps  thee." 
Onesimus,  so  doing  as  Syrus  planned 
His  part,  was  reckoned  of  lord  Felix  slave, 
And  on  that  vessel  sailed  with  him  to  Rome. 

Now  that  which  Syrus  had,  on  Stephen's  behalf 
And  on  Eunice's,  done  and  dared  the  day 
That  Felix  in  his  lust  threatened  to  them 
In  his  own  house  in  Melita  such  harm  — 
This,  Stephen  in  time  had  come  to  know ;  nor 

ceased 

Thenceforth  to  wish  that  he  might  recompense 
In  some  kind  to  the  bondman  his  good  will. 
His  grateful  wish  Stephen  had  signified 
To  Syrus,  which  emboldened  him  in  turn 
To  make  the  Hebrew  youth  a  confidant 
Of  his  devices  for  Onesimus. 
Thus  Stephen  with  Onesimus  had  talked ; 
Not  often,  for  need  was  that  all  should  be 
Transacted  as  in  secret  to  avoid 
Felix's,  more,  Drusilla's,  jealous  watch  — 
Not  often  but  so  many  times  as  served 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  6OI 

To  yield  some  true  impression  to  the  youth 

Of  what  the  slave  was  in  his  manhood's  worth, 

And  to  inflame  a  generous  desire 

Of  rescue  for  him  to  a  nobler  life. 

Stephen  spoke  of  Onesimus  to  Paul, 

And  Paul  on  shipboard  came  to  speech  with  him. 

The  runaway's  heart  was  wholly  won  to  Paul ; 

And  ere  those  parted  at  Puteoli 

Onesimus  had  gladly  promised  Stephen 

To  seek  his  uncle  out,  arrived  in  Rome. 

A  sequel  thence  redounded  to  the  slave 

Of  boundless  blessing  he  had  dreamed  not  of ; 

Likewise  of  good  to  men  in  every  age 

Wherever  might  be  found  fit  soul  to  be 

Ennobled  to  the  touch  of  noble  thought, 

In  answerable  style  with  nobleness 

Conveyed,  and  purified  fine  feeling,  borne 

To  perfect  heavenly-mindedness  yet  sweet 

And  tender  with  a  pulsing  human  love. 

For  Felix  and  Drusilla,  disembarked, 
No  welcome  waited  and  no  warm  godspeed ; 
They  went  their  Romeward  way  in  lonely  state, 
The  showiest  that  in  their  impoverished  plight 


602  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXI. 

They  could  make  shift  to  invest  themselves  withal. 

But  Paul  with  his  companions,  good  heart's  cheer 

Met  at  Puteoli ;  a  brotherhood 

Of  lovers  greeted  them  and  bade  them  bide 

Seven  days  for  rest  and  for  refreshment  there : 

The  kindly  Julius  suffered  this  to  them 

For  Paul's  sake  easily,  seeing  to  Paul  he  owed 

His  own  life  snatched  from  those  shipwrecking 

waves. 

A  week  of  opportunity  it  was 
To  Paul  for  service  of  his  fellow-men  ; 
For  he  most  rested  when  he  labored  most, 
Unhindered,  with  the  joy  of  harvest  his, 
Winning  men  to  the  obedience  of  his  Lord. 
Fed  with  a  full  refection  of  such  toil 
And  gladdened  with  the  cordial  dearest  to  him, 
Comfort  of  love  from  mutual  human  hearts, 
The  prisoner  apostle,  those  seven  days 
Ended,  was  ready  to  move  on  toward  Rome, 

Dusty  and  weary  footing  many  a  mile 
To  him  and  to  his  fellow-prisoners, 
As  to  those  willing  sharers  of  his  lot, 
Lay  stretched  before  them  on  the  Roman  road- 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  603 

Eastward  a  stage  by  the  Campanian  Way 
To  Capua  —  city  famous  then  as  since 
For  lulling  in  her  too  luxurious  lap 


To  loss  of  manhood  in  enervate  sloth 
Those  warriors  who,  with  the  great  Hannibal 
For  leader,  late  had  spurned  the  barrier  Alps, 
Thence,  like  a  loosened  avalanche,  had  fallen 
On  Italy  —  and  might  have  taken  Rome! 

<!/" 

A  different  conqueror  now  in  captive's  chains 

Was  marching  on  that  world-metropolis  : 

No  battle  of  the  warrior  would  he  wage, 

With  confused  noise  and  garments  rolled  in  blood  ; 

Yet  wrested  from  the  Caesars  Rome  should  be 

And  from  the  empire  of  her  gods  no  gods ! 

From  Capua  northwestward  breaking  sharp, 
The  Way,  now  Appian  from  Campanian,  led 
Over  the  stream  Vulturnus ;  then  across 
Savo  to  Sinuessa  by  the  sea; 
Onward  thence,  climbing  the  Falernian  hills 
Vine-clad,  until  the  Massic,  last  of  these, 
Descended  on  their  northward-sliding  slope, 
Shut  off  behind  the  wayfarers  their  view 
Of  the  bright  summit  of  Vesuvius 


604  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  Book  XXI- 

(His  fiery  heart  uneasily  asleep) 

And  the  blue  circlet  of  the  Lucrine  Lake. 


Like  a  stream  flooded  level  with  its  banks, 
The  Appian  Way  was  filled  from  side  to  side 
With  travel  flowing  double  to  and  fro. 
Now  centuries  of  soldiers,  foot  or  horse, 
Clanged  iron  hoof  or  heel  with  rhythmic  beat 
Along  the  bedded  rock  that  paved  their  way ; 
Now  pomps  of  embassy  in  various  garb, 
Returning  from  their  suits  at  Caesar's  feet 
Or  thither  tending  vexed  with  hope  or  fear ; 
Then  some  gay  reveller  to  Baiae  bound, 
Behind  his  foaming  steeds  urged  ever  on, 
Dashed  in  his  biga  down  the  crowded  road 
And  recked  not  what  might  meet  his  whirling 

wheels ; 

Next,  moving  slowly  in  more  solemn  state  — 
Outriders  either  hand  and  nigh  before  — 
The  chariot  of  some  rich  patrician  rolled 
Who  sought  the  spring  of  southern  Italy : 
Huge  wains  there  were,  that  creaked  along  the  way 
Laden  with  beasts  from  Afric  or  from  Ind, 
Lions  and  tigers,  and  hyenas  dire  ; 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  605 

These  —  destined  to  dye  red,  perhaps  with  blood 

/ 

Of  human  ravin,  the  arena  sands 
Of  mighty  amphitheaters,  a  feast 
Of  foul  and  fell  delight  to  avid  eyes 
Of  Roman  lords  and  ladies  gathered  there 
With  scum  and  dross  plebeian  to  behold- 
Now  winked  and  glared  behind  their  prison-bars 
Or  frothed  and  fretted  out  their  fierce  disdain. 
Luxurious  litters  borne  of  sinewy  slaves  — 
Who  softly  eased  them,  bending  as  they  went 
With  well-timed  flexure  and  compliant  gait 
Their  supple  knees  in  perfect  unison  — 
Were  thickly  sown  between,  with  ladies  fair 
Reposing  in  them  sunk  in  silk  and  down, 
Or  senators  of  Rome  effeminate  ; 
Besides,  were  foot-wayfarers,  motley  groups 
Or  single,  messengers  that  hasted  post, 
Slaves  trusted  by  their  masters  to  convey 
Letters  of  import  out  of  lands  remote 
To  Rome  or  out  of  Rome  abroad ;  with  those, 
Idlers  and  loiterers  sauntering  without  aim, 
Vomit  from  Rome  or  current  thither  sucked, 
Freemen,  but  of  the  dregs  of  populace 
And  shameless  feeders  at  the  public  crib. 


606  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXI. 

Beholding  all  this  various  spectacle 
Of  life  lived  wholly  without  God,  and  vain, 
Paul  sighed  in  spirit  and  thought :  *  The  world, 

the  world  ! 

How  vast  and  dreadful,  overshadowing  all ! 
How  strong  and  dreadful,  dominating  all ! 
Kingdom  and  usurpation  in  the  earth  ! 
What  power  shall  overthrow  thee,  so  enthroned 
As  thou  art  at  the  center  of  all  things 
In  Rome,  and  wielding,  thou  unshaken  there, 
Thence  wielding  all  the  shaken  universe 
Implement  in  thy  hand  to  wreak  thy  will? 
Appalling  !     Yea,  yet  am  I  not  appalled. 
"  Be  of  good  cheer,"  said  Jesus,  then  when  He 
Seemed  to  be  sinking  vanquished  by  the  world, 
Even  then,  "  Be  of  good  cheer,"  said  He,  "  lo,  I 
Have  overcome  the  world."     O,  hollow  show 
And  mockery  of  power  browbeating  me  ! 
Browbeaten  am  I  not,  though  in  myself 
Nothing,  nay,  less  than  nothing,  vanity. 
There  is  One  in  me  who  is  mightier  far 
Than  is  that  mighty  who  is  in  the  world. 
Not  carnal  are  the  weapons  of  my  war  ; 
But  potent  through  my  God  they  yet  shall  prove 


Book  XXI,  ARRIVAL.  607 

Unto  the  pulling  down  of  all  strong  holds, 
And  false  imaginations  of  the  minds 
Of  men,  with  every  overweening  high 
Thing  that  exalts  itself  against  the  Lord  ! 

'  But,  O,  the  streams  of  men  that  blinded  go, 
One  secular  procession  perishing, 
Endlessly  on  and  on,  from  age  to  age, 
In  every  race  and  clime  —  that  blinded  go 
In  sadness  or  with  madcap  songs  of  mirth 
Frightfully  toward  the  brink  and  precipice 
Beetling  sheer  over  the  abyss  profound 
Of  hopeless  utter  last  despair  and  death - 
For  whom  Christ  died  !     Shall  He  have  died  in 

vain  ? 

Forbid  it  God!     Was  it  not  promised  Him 
That  he  should  of  the  travail  of  His  soul 
See  and  be  satisfied  ?     My  soul  with  His 
Travails  in  infinite  desire  to  save  ; 
Give  Thou  me  children  in  my  bonds  at  Rome  ! 
O  God,  my  God,  hear  me  herein  I  pray  !  ' 

Enlarged  in  heart  with  such  desire  and  prayer 
And  lifted  high  in  hope  of  what  would  be, 
Paul  walked  as  one  with  feet  above  the  ground 


6o8  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXI. 

Unconsciously  buoyed  up  to  tread  the  air. 
But  God  had  further  cheer  in  store  for  him. 
At  Appii  Forum  and  the  Taverns  Three, 
Two  several  stations  on  the  Appian  Way, 
There  met  him  out  of  Rome  two  companies 
Of  brethren  who,  while  he  abode  those  days 
Guest  at  Puteoli,  had  heard  of  him 
As  Romeward  faring,  and  had  come  thus  far 
To  bring  him  greeting  and  good  cheer.     They  vied 
With  one  another,  those  two  companies, 
In  joyful  rivalry  of  love  to  see 

Which  should  speed  faster  farther  forth,  and  come 
First  with  their  plight  of  loyalty  to  Paul. 
Divided  thus,  their  welcome  doubled  was 
In  worth  and  in  effect  to  him  who  now 
Thanked  God  and  took  fresh   heart.     So  on   to 
Rome. 

The  city,  from  the  summit  of  a  hill 
Surmounted,  of  the  Alban  range,  hill  hung 
With  villas  and  with  villages,  was  seen, 
A  huge  agglomerate  of  building  heaved 
Above  the  level  campagna,  circuit  wide 
By  the  blue  Sabine  mountains  bounded  north 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  6o 

With  lone  Soracte  in  Etruria  shown  — 

Streets  of  bright  suburbs,  gardens,  aqueducts 

Confused  about  the  walls  on  every  side. 

Between  long  rows  of  stately  sepulchers 

Illustrious  with  memorial  names  inscribed, 

The  Scipios,  the  Metelli,  many  more  — 

Each  name  a  magic  spell  to  summon  up 

The  image  of  the  greatness  of  the  Rome 

That  had  been  — ranged  along  the  Appian  Way, 

Slowly  they  passed,  Paul  with  his  train,  unmarked. 

Through  throngs  of  frequence  serried  ever  dense 

And  denser  with  the  confluence  of  the  tides 

Of  travel  and  of  traffic  intermixed, 

Pedestrian,  and  equestrian,  and  what  rolled 

In  chariots,  splendid  equipage,  or  mean, 

Entering  and  issuing  at  the  city  gate 

Slowly,  thus  hindered,  on  they  urged  their  way. 

At  last  they  — passing  by  the  Capene  port 
Under  an  arch  of  stone  forever  dewed 
And  dripping  through  its  grudging  pores  with  ooze 
As  of  cold  sweat  wrung  out  by  agony 
To  bear  the  great  weight  of  the  aqueduct 
Above  it  — were  within  the  Servian  Wall. 


6 io  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXI. 

On  their  left  hand  the  Aventine,  they  wound 

About  the  Ccelian  by  its  base  ;  traversed 

A  droop  of  hollow  to  the  Palatine  ; 

Over  the  gentle  undulation  named 

Velia  next  passing  (where,  ere  many  years, 

The  arch  of  Titus  would  erect  its  pride 

To  glory  over  Jerusalem  destroyed  ! )  ; 

Hence  down  the  Sacred  Way  into  the  famed 

Forum,  where  stood  that  milestone  golden  called 

Which  rayed  out  roads  to  all  the  provinces, 

And  was  as  if  the  navel  of  the  world. 

All  round  them  here  great  architecture  rose, 
/Temples,  basilicas,  long  colonnades, 
Triumphal  arches,  amphitheaters, 
Aqueducts  vaulting  with  colossal  spring 
As  if  in  huge  Cyclopean  sport  across 
From  pier  to  pier  of  massive  masonry  ; 
Stupendous  spectacle  !  but  over  all, 
To  Paul's  eye,  one  sole  legend  written  large, 
Not  Rome's  majestic  history  and  power, 
But  her  abjectness  in  idolatry  ; 
Rome's  captive  pitied  her,  and  would  have  saved ! 

Crowning  the  summit  of  the  Capitoline, 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  611 

The  palace  of  the  Caesars  wide  outspread, 

A  wilderness  of  building1,  hung  in  view. 

To  Burrus,  the  praetorian  prefect,  here 

In  due  course  Julius  gave  his  prisoners  up; 

But  ere  he  deemed  himself  acquitted  quite 

Of  his  debt  due  to  Paul  he  gained  for  him 

From  Burrus,  a  just  man,  the  privilege 

Of  living  as  in  free  captivity 

In  quarters  of  his  own,  at  small  remove 

From  the  praetorium  yet  in  privacy. 

With  Paul  abode  his  sister  and  her  son  ; 

Ruth  nigh  at  hand  with  her  Eunice  lodged  — 

Protected,  for  again  from  these  not  far 

The  faithful  Luke  and  Aristarchus  dwelt. 

A  season  the  disciples  of  the  Lord 

In  Rome  supplied  to  all  their  frugal  needs; 

But  each  one  had  some  handicraft  or  skill 

Which  soon  found  chance  and  scope  to  exercise 

Itself  to  purpose  ;  and  with  cheerful  toil 

In  thankfulness  they  earned  their  daily  bread. 

Two  years  long  here,  as  late  in  Caesarea, 
Paul  waited  on  the  wanton  whim  of  power; 
A  prisoner  in  chains,  accused  of  crime, 


6 1 2  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXI. 

And  even  the  right  of  trial  still  denied. 

Yet,  though  both  night  and  day,  asleep,  awake, 

Bound  to  a  ruthless  Roman  soldier  arm 

To  arm,  he,  the  great  heart,  the  spacious  mind, 

Was  not  uncomforted,  not  void  of  joy: 

He  had  at  full  his  fellowship  of  love, 

And,  better,  he  could  freely  preach  his  Lord. 

Besides,  whatever  soldier  guarded  him, 

That  soldier,  if  his  heart  was  capable 

At  all  of  gentleness  for  any  cause 

Toward  any  one,  was  softened  toward  this  man 

Whom  he  felt  ever  strangely  toward  himself 

As  toward  one  not  so  happy  in  his  lot 

Considerate,  regardful,  pitiful  ; 

And  whom  not  seldom,  with  a  sweet  constraint 

Persuaded  or  compelled,  he  listened  to 

Telling  him  of  a  Savior  that  could  save 

Even  to  the  uttermost,  therefore  also  him 

As  loyal  lover  of  his  nation,  Paul 
Invited  to  give  audience  to  his  cause 
First  his  compatriots  judged  the  chief  in  Rome. 
He  told  them  that,  albeit  he  had  appealed 
To  Csesar  from  his  fellow-countrymen, 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  613 

Yet  had  he  naught  to  accuse  his  nation  of. 
Paul's  hearers  on  their  part  had  had,  they  said, 
No  word  against  him  from  Jerusalem. 
They  added  :    "  We  would   hear  thee  speak  thy 

mind  ; 

As  for  this  party  of  the  Nazarene, 
That  everywhere  we  know  is  spoken  against." 
So  they  appointed  Paul  a  day  to  speak, 
And  in  full  frequence  to  his  lodgings  came. 
All  the  day  long  from  morn  to  evenfall 
He  held  discourse  to  them,  and  testified 
The  kingdom  come  on  earth  of  God,  and  Him, 
The  King,  Christ  Jesus  ;  with  persuasions  drawn 
From  Moses  and  from  all  the  prophets  old. 
Divided  were  his  hearers  ;  some  elect 
Believed,  but  others  disbelieved.     To  these 
Paul  solemnly  denounced  the  prophecy 
Of  sad  Isaiah  to  his  countrymen 
That  seeing  they  should  see  and  not  perceive  ; 
Then  added  :  "Witness  now,  I  make  you  know 
That  the  salvation  sent  by  God  in  vain 
To  you  turns  to  the  Gentiles ;  they  will  hear." 
Thenceforward  daily,  streams  of  concourse  flowed 
Unhindered,  bondmen,  freemen,  to  Paul's  doors, 


614  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXI. 

And  heard  while  God's  ambassador  in  chains 
Besought  them  to  be  reconciled  to  God. 

The  million  slaves  of  the  metropolis 
Were  as  a  subterranean  city  Rome, 
Substruction  to  the  mighty  capital. 
Here  undercurrent  rumor  to  and  fro 
From  mouth  to  mouth  or  haply  in  dumb  sign 
Transmitted  —  cipher  unintelligible 
Save  to  the  dwellers  of  that  underworld  — 
Ran  swift  and  secret  as  by  telegraph 
And  everywhither  messages  conveyed. 
Onesimus  thus  learned  where  Paul  abode, 
And  what  a  tide  set  daily  toward  him  there 
Of  eager  audience  for  the  things  he  taught : 
The  bondman  threw  himself  upon  the  tide, 
And  was  borne  by  it  whither  he  would  go. 
Hearing  good  tidings  meant  for  such  as  he, 
Decree  of  manumission  for  the  slave, 
He  joyful  freeman  of  the  Lord  became. 
Freeman  and  bondman  both  at  once  was  he  — 
Free  from  the  hateful  service  of  himself, 
And  bond  of  love  to  serve  his  Savior  Lord. 

This  his  new  loyalty  Paul  put  to  proof 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  615 

Extreme,  proposing  to  the  runaway 
Return  to  his  Colossian  servitude  ; 
Paul  would  test  also  the  obedient  faith 
Of  the  wronged  master  of  the  fugitive. 
When  Syrus  learned  this  from  Onesimus, 
He,  wary,  with  a  much-importing  shrug 
Of  shoulder,  warned  his  friend  betimes  beware. 
The  young  disciple  by  such  whispered  fears 
Was  somewhat  shaken  in  his  faithful  mind  ; 
He  failed  a  moment  from  his  first  good  will 
To  do  as  prompted  his  new  heart  and  Paul. 
But  at  the  last  he  was  persuaded  quite  ; 
Yet  rather  by  the  spectacle  itself 
Of  that  apostle  willingly  in  chains 
For  Jesus  than  by  any  words  he  spoke : 
He  fixed  to  go  back  to  his  master.     Paul 
Gave  him  a  letter  for  that  master,  sealed. 
Now  Paul  well  knew  the  master,  but  of  this 
He  wisely  to  Onesimus  said  naught. 
Philemon  was  his  name  ;  he  had  by  Paul 
Been  won  to  be  a  brother  in  the  Lord. 

"  How  knowest  thou  what  is  in  that  letter?  "  so 
Syrus,  with  honest  scruple,  asked  his  friend. 


616  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-  Book  XXI- 

"  Paul  is  a  good  man,  aye ;  but  good  men  need 
Money  in  Rome  to  serve  themselves  withal. 
He  makes  a  merit  of  returning  thee 
Haply  and  in  his  letter  claims  reward 
Which  thou  thyself  shalt  pay  with  servitude 
Exacted  henceforth  heavier  than  before  — 
Besides  the  stripes  and  brands  for  runaways. 
Thou  hast  thy  freedom,  keep  it,  and  be  wise." 

Onesimus  was  wise,  but  he  went  back  ; 
Onesimus  was  wise  ;  yea,  and  he  kept 
His  freedom  also,  double  freedom  kept, 
Of  spirit  as  of  flesh,  though  he  went  back. 
This  was  the  letter  which  the  bondman  bore  : 
1  Paul,  prisoner  of  Christ  Jesus,  and  with  him 
'  Timotheus  the  brother,  to  our  friend 
'  Beloved  and  our  fellow-laborer, 
'  Philemon  ;  and  to  Appia  the  sister  ; 
'  And  to  our  fellow-soldier  of  the  truth, 
'  Archippus  ;  and  to  all  the  church  with  thee  : 
'  Grace  unto  you  and  peace  in  plenteous  store, 
'From  God  our  Father  and  His  Son  our  Lord  ! 

'  I  never  cease  pouring  out  thanks  to  God 
*  For  thee,  my  brother,  in  my  daily  prayers  ; 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  617 

'  I  hear  such  tidings  of  thy  faith  and  love 

'  Toward  our  Lord  Jesus  and  toward  all  God's 

own. 

1 1  pray  thy  faith  may  multiply  itself 
'  Richly  in  others,  and  of  influence  prove 
'  To  spread  the  knowledge  everywhere  abroad 
'  Of  all  the  good  in  us  to  work  for  Christ. 
'  Joy  have  I  and  sweet  comfort  in  thy  love, 
'  Because  God's  people  oft  have  been  in  heart 
1  Cheered  by  thee,  brother.     So,  albeit  I  might 
'  Boldly  in  the  authority  of  Christ 
'  Enjoin  upon  thee  what  is  seemly,  yet 
'For  love's  sake  I  beseech  thee  rather,  I, 
'  Being  such  as  Paul  the  aged,  prisoner  now 
'Of  Jesus  Christ — beseech  thee  for  my  son 
1  Whom  I  have  late  begotten  in  my  bonds, 
'  Onesimus  ;  unprofitable  once 
'  To  thee  but  now  to  thee  and  me  alike 
'  Found  profitable.     I  have  sent  him  back- 
'  Him  have  sent  back,  that  is,  mine  own  heart 

sent ; 

'  I  fain  myself  had  kept  him  with  me.  here 
'  To  minister  to  me  in  thy  stead,  while  I 
'  For  preaching  the  glad  tidings  wear  these  bonds  ; 


6i8  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXL 

'  But  I  would  nothing  do  without  thy  mind 
'  In  order  that  thy  kindness  may  not  be 
'  As  of  compulsion  but  of  free  good  will. 
'  Who  knows  but  in  God's  grace  and  wisdom  he 
'  Was  parted  from  thee  for  a  little  time 
'  That  thou  mightst  have  him  for  thine  own  for 
ever, 

'  As  slave  no  longer,  but  above  a  slave, 
'  Brother  beloved  now,  greatly  to  me, 
'  But  how  much  more  to  thee,  both  in  the  flesh 
'And  in  the  Lord  !    If  then  a  partner's  place 
'  I  hold  in  thy  regard,  receive  thou  him 
'  Even  as  myself.     If  he  have  wronged  thee  aught, 
'  Or  anywise  have  fallen  in  debt  to  thee, 
'  Put  that  to  mine  account/ 

Until  these  words, 

Paul  had  let  Stephen  catch  with  ear  alert 
What  issued  hastening  from  his  fervid  lips, 
And  fix  it  on  the  parchment  with  swift  hand. 
But  now  himself  he  seized  the  pen  and  wrote 
As  so  to  make  his  promise  fast  and  good. 

'  Put  that  to  mine  account,'  he  wrote ;  '  I,  Paul, 
1  Write  this  with  mine  own  hand ;  I  will  repay 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  619 

'  Thee  ;  for  I  would  not  say  to  thee  that  thou 

'  Owest  to  me  thy  very  self  besides. 

'Yea,  brother '-—now  by  Stephen's  hand  once 

more  — 

'  Let  me  have  joy  of  thee  in  Christ  the  Lord ; 
'Comfort  thou  me  in  Him.     I  write  to  thee 
'  In  fullest  faith  of  thine  obedient  heed  ; 
'Thou  wilt  go  even  beyond  my  word  I  know. 
'  Moreover  I  have  hope  to  be  thy  guest 
4  Erelong ;    make   ready   for  me  ;    through   the 

prayers 
'  Of  you  beloved  all,  I  trust  to  come. 

'  Epaphras,  fellow-prisoner  of  mine 
'  In  Jesus  Christ,  sends  greeting  to  thee ;  Mark 
'  Likewise,  and  Aristarchus,  Demas,  Luke, 
'  My  fellow-laborers,  wish  thee  health  and  peace. 
'  The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  abide 
'  A  guestship  with  your  spirit  evermore  ! ' 

The  generous  trust  Paul  staked  upon  him  found 
Philemon  worthy,  or  him  worthy  made. 
At  first  he  frowned  on  his  returning  slave, 
Who  shrank  before  him,  conscious  of  his  fault. 
But  in  the  truth  and  secret  of  their  hearts, 


620  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXI. 

Master  and  bondman  toward  each  other  yearned. 

Either  remembered  what  before  had  been, 

The  wont  of  mutual  human-heartedness 

Which,  between  such  as  they,  could  not  but  spring 

To  blossom  in  kind  offices  exchanged 

To  make  the  bond  of  master  and  of  slave 

Unnatural  though  it  was  yet  tolerable. 

Philemon,  less  in  anger  and  despite 

Than  in  love  disappointed  and  aggrieved, 

Was  ready  to  burst  out  upon  the  youth 

In  loud  upbraidings  of  his  gracelessness 

To  have  made  his  master  such  return  for  all 

The  kindness  he  had  tasted  in  his  house  ; 

Whereto  Onesimus  would  have  replied 

With  protestations  of  his  penitence 

And  tears  of  promise  never  to  offend 

Again  a  master  so  magnanimous  ; 

But  when  Philemon  broke  the  letter's  seal 

And  read  what  Paul  had  written,  his  eyes  swam 

And  his  heart  melted  and  he  flung  his  arms 

Wide  to  embrace  his  slave  and  welcome  him 

With  kisses  of  a  brother  to  his  breast  ; 

And  they  twain  wept  together  happy  tears 

Of  equal  love  and  heavenly  gratitude, 


Book  XXI.  ARRIVAL.  621 

And  fell  upon  their  knees  before  the  Lord 
And  poured  out  all  their  soul  in  fervent  prayer 
For  Paul  through  whom  their  blessing  came  to  them. 

Soon  after,  from  Philemon  charged  with  gifts 
To  Paul  and  many  messages  of  love, 
Onesimus  went  joyful  back  to  Rome 
To  serve  his  master  there  by  serving  Paul. 
He  faithfully  rehearsed  to  Syrus  all 
That  at  Colossae  chanced  to  him,  and  said : 
"  Paul  never  told  me  that  he  knew  my  lord, 
That  therefore  I  might  trust  him  all  in  all. 
He  must  have  wished  to  put  me  so  to  proof 
What  naked  peril  I  would  dare  for  Christ. 
I  tremble  when  I  think  :   '  If  I  had  failed 
In  faith  and  in  obedience  to  Paul's  word  ! 
Had  I  not  made  the  venture  to  go  back  ! 
What  had  I  lost  on  earth,  perhaps  in  heaven  ! ' 
But  I  am  glad  the  venture  was  so  sheer, 
Since  I  at  last  went  back  in  spite  of  doubt. 
But,  know,  my  heart  beat  thick  against  my  ribs, 
When  I  was  on  the  brink  to  meet  him  first, 
My  master  —  for  in  truth  I  had  wrought  him  wrong. 
But,  Syrus,  what  thinkest  thou  my  master  did? 


622  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXI. 

Thou  hast  never,  I  suppose,  beheld  a  slave 

Wept  over  by  his  master  as  in  love, 

And  like  an  equal  drawn  unto  his  breast 

And  kissed.     But  so  my  master  did  to  me. 

For  he  too  was  disciple,  like  myself, 

And  Paul  erst  won  him  to  discipleship  ; 

And  thus  we  twain  were  brethren  in  the  Lord. 

And  he  was  tried  and  found  not  wanting  too  ! 

And  here  am  I  in  Rome,  no  runaway, 

But  hither  by  Philemon's  wishes  sped 

To  be  a  happy  minister  to  Paul." 

When  Syrus  heard  such  things,  the  skeptic  heart 
That  had  resisted  all  Paul's  eloquence 
Was  overcome  at  last  through  works  to  faith. 


BOOK     XXII. 
DRUSILLA   AND   NERO. 


While  Paul  in  chains  is  writing  to  Christian  churches 
letters  characterized  at  once  by  the  sublimest  reaches  of 
spiritual  vision  and  by  the  most  painstaking  condescension 
to  details  of  practical  precept,  Simon  the  sorcerer,  with  Felix 
and  Drusilla,  plots  the  apostle's  death.  Simon  proceeds  by 
indirection,  having  it  in  mind  to  bring  about  the  death  of 
Felix  also.  This  he  accomplishes,  with  the  collusion  and 
complicity  of  Drusilla.  But  first,  at  Drusilla's  instance,  he 
procures  for  her  in  company  with  her  husband  an  audience 
with  Nero,  of  which  Poppaea,  the  emperor's  favorite,  is  secretly 
an  observer.  Poppaea  notices  the  impression  made  on  her 
sovereign  by  Drusilla,  and  she  is  openly  present  at  a  subse 
quent  hearing  granted  by  Nero  to  the  beautiful  Jewess,  dur 
ing  which  the  latter  accuses  Paul,  together  with  other  crimes, 
of  instigating  the  murder  by  poison  of  Felix.  Nero  through 
out  displays,  with  much  license,  his  reckless  and  frivolous 
character. 


DRUSILLA  AND  NERO. 

That  Phrygian  slave  did  not  companionless 
His  way  Colossae-ward  pursue;  he  went 
By  Tychicus  accompanied,  who  bore 
Another  letter  written  from  the  lips 
Of  Paul  to  the  Colossian  church  at  large. 
This  gloried  and  exVilted  in  sublime 
Prophetic  visions  of  far  future  things  — 
Things  future  far  and  other  quite  than  these. 
Paul's  hand  was  manacled,  but  not  his  soul : 
That,  given  the  freedom  of  the  universe, 
Ranged  as  at  will  on  wing  omnipotent 
Through  all  the  heights  and  depths  of  space  and 

time, 

And  saw  unutterable  things,  which  he 
Seeking  to  lade  upon  expression  made 
The  very  pillars  of  expression  bend 
And  sway  and  totter,  like  to  sink,  beneath 
The  burden  insupportable  they  bore. 

Great  soul  and  free,  free  in  a  body  bound, 
So  soaring  those  empyreal  altitudes 


* 

•UNIVERSITY 


626  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 

Winged  with  his  native  vigor  but  upborne 
On  a  strong-breasted  gale  of  power  divine 
Inspiring  and  enabling  him,  who  took 
Unclazzled,  like  an  eagle  in  full  gaze 
Upon  the  sun,  insufferably  bright 
Glimpses  of  heavenly  glory,  he  yet  deigned  — 
Nay,  he  ascended  but  to  condescend 
The  mightier  by  his  lofty  lowliness, 
From  exaltation  such  beheld  come  down  !  — 
Deigned  to  the  level  of  the  mean  degree 
Of  men  that  needed  to  be  counselled  thus : 
"  Lie  not  one  to  another,  seeing  ye 
"  Have  put  off  the  old  man  that  late  ye  were, 
"  Him  with  his  deeds,  and  the  new  man  put  on, 
"  The  man  made  new  through  knowledge  to  be 
come 

"  Once  more  the  image,  long  so  far  defaced, 
11  Of  that  God  who  at  first  created  him. 
"  Put  ye  on,  therefore,  as  elect  of  God 
"To  be  His  holy  and  beloved,  all 
"  Sweet  meltingness  of  heart,  kindness  and  love, 
"A  lowly  mind  most  meek,  long-suffering, 
"  Forbearing  one  another,  and  should  ever, 
"  But  that  be  far !  some  man  among  you  have 


Book  XXII.        DRUSILLA  AND  NERO. 


627 


"Complaint  or  quarrel  against  any,  then, 

"  As  Christ  forgave  you  once,  forgive  so  ye ; 

"  And  over  all  these  vestments  of  the  soul, 

"  Completing  them  and  binding  them  secure, 

"  Put  ye  on  love,  girdle  of  perfectness. 

"And  let  the  peace  of  Christ  rule  in  your  hearts. 

"Ye  wives,  to  your  own  husbands  subject  be, 
"  So  yielding  as  befits  you  in  the  Lord. 
"  Ye  husbands,  love  your  wives  and  nourish  not 
"  Against  them  any  bitterness  of  heart. 
"  Children,  obey  your  parents  in  all  things, 
"  For  this  well-pleasing  is  unto  the  Lord. 
"  Fathers,  good  heed  give  ye  not  to  provoke 
"  Your  children  unto  wrath,  lest  they  lose  heart. 
"  Servants,  your  masters  in  the  flesh  obey, 
"  Not  with  eye-service  as  men-pleasers,  this, 
"  But  single-heartedly  as  fearing  God. 
"And  whatsoever  be  the  thing  ye  do, 
"  Heartily  do  it,  as  if  doing  all 
"  For  the  Lord  Christ  in  heaven  and  not  for  men  ; 
"  Knowing  that  of  the  Lord  ye  shall  receive 
"Guerdon  of  that  inheritance  reserved 
"  For  your  true  bond  of  service  is  to  Christ. 


62g  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 

"  But  he  that  doeth  wrong  shall  for  that  wrong 

"  Due  recompense  receive  ;  and  with  the  Lord 

"  Is  no  respect  of  person  or  degree. 

"  Ye  masters,  to  your  servants  what  is  just 

"  And  equal  render ;  for  a  Master  ye, 

"  Ye  also,  have  who  watcheth  from  the  heaven." 

While  Paul  with  tongue  or  pen  such  things 

discoursed, 

Things  heavenly  and  things  earthly  intermixed 
(Yet  so  as  earthly  things  to  raise  to  heaven, 
Like  the  sea  lifted  skyward  by  the  moon), 
Simon  the  sorcerer,  with  the  guilty  pair, 
His  master  and  his  mistress,  otherwise 
Was  busy,  plotting  the  apostle's  death. 
Plot  within  plot  there  was  ;  the  sorcerer  sought 
The  death  of  Felix  too,  for  hate  of  him. 
To  compass  this,  he  fed  Drusilla's  mind 
With  bitter  poison  and  with  poison  sweet ; 
The  bitter,  of  innuendo  to  inflame 
Her  jealous  rancor  more  against  her  spouse; 
The  sweet,  of  flattery  ever  interfused 
In  casual  hint  dropped,  whisper  by  the  way, 
No  recognition  sought,  still  less  reply, 


629 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO. 

Rebuke,  repudiation,  tempted  not, 

But  inly  working  to  inebriate 

Her  pride  of  beauty  and  her  sense  of  power, 

Till  she  should  dare  whatever  need  be  dared 

Of  danger  or  of  crime  to  clear  her  way 

To  empire  hoped  over  the  emperor. 

At  length  the  double  venom  took  effect 
Such  on  Drusilla's  fierce  aspiring  mind, 
That  Simon  ventured  on  these  words  to  her: 
"  111  sleeper  is  thine  husband,  O  my  liege  ! 
I  overhear  him  oft  in  troubled  dream 
Belching  forth  broken  voices  of  unrest. 
He  sleeps  like  /Etna  or  Vesuvius, 
Say  like  Enceladus  with  yEtna  piled  — 
Thou  knowest  their  fable  of  that  giant  old. 
I  hope  he  never  will  by  evil  chance 
Work  his  wife  harm  unmeant  in  his  nightmares ! 
Such  weight,  such  strength,  are  monstrous  in  such 
throes!" 

Drusilla  was  as  deep  as  Simon  ;  she 
Well  enough  guessed  whither  he  tended  so. 
She  made  her  face  an  utter  vacancy, 
And  listened  all  as  if  she  listened  not, 


630  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII. 

While  Simon,  who  was  satisfied,  went  on 

With  his  approaches  neither  shunned  nor  met : 

"  At  least,  madam,  thine  own  rest  needs  must  be 

Disturbed  :  it  would  be  easy  to  compose 

Thine  husband  to  a  sounder  sleep."     He  paused, 

And  she  made  answer  quite  as  from  the  point, 

But  Simon  did  not  miss  the  relevance : 

"  Simon,  my  lord  is  still  postponed  at  court, 

Has  had  no  hearing  of  the  emperor : 

Reason  enough  that  he  should  restless  be. 

Procure  he  have  his  audience  soon,  and  then- 

Simon,  what  thinkest  thou  ?     Would  it  not  be  well 

That  I  attend  him  when  he  pleads  his  cause? 

Thou  knowest  I  have  some  gift  of  eloquence, 

The  woman's,  and  thy  master  is  but  man, 

And  somewhat  slow  of  speech — if  thick  of  wit 

Too,  that  becomes  me  not  to  say  to  thee. 

I  feel  that  I  might  help  our  common  cause 

By  being  in  presence  with  the  emperor 

Myself,  as  loyal  sponsor  for  my  spouse." 

"Excellent,"  Simon  said;  "and  no  doubt  I, 

Permitted  to  make  proffer  such  as  this 

From  queen  Drusilla,  shall  with  ease  contrive 

An  early  audience  with  his  majesty." 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  631 

The  conscious  twain  each  other  understood, 
But  neither  token  gave  with  lip  or  eye. 

Simon  bethought  him  of  the  beautiful 
Wanton,  Poppeea,  with  the  emperor 
Precariously  omnipotent  by  her  charm. 
To  her,  in  manner  suiting  such  as  he, 
He  wormed  at  length  his  way  and  fawning  said  : 
"  I  have  some  little  skill  in  certain  arts 
Called  by  the  people  magic,  and  I  fain 
Thus  offer  thee  my  services.     I  thought 
I  might  amuse  a  tedious  idle  hour 
For  his  imperial  majesty  and  so 

Perhaps,  I  know  not  how,  but  thou  shouldst  choose, 
Serve  thee,  the  wonder  of  the  woman  world. 
Nay,  this  presumes  amiss  ;  I  crave  thy  grace, 
Forgive  me,  thou  who  art  already  queen 
And  empress  of  the  earth,  and  canst  not  need 
Service  from  any.     I  am  all  confused 
Before  thee,  like  one  dazzled  by  the  sun. 

"  It  is  my  foolish  vanity,  I  feel, 
Nothing  but  that ;  but  here  am  I  in  Rome, 
And  it  would  be  the  triumph  of  my  life- 
Just  a  Judaean  magian  as  I  am- 


632 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL,  Book  XXII. 


To  have  seen  the  emperor,  and  diverted  him 
With  a  few  rather  pretty  tricks  I  know. 
I  on  occasion  have  even  awed  a  mind 
Open  to  superstition  (as  most  minds 
Are  sometimes,  aye,  the  wisest  among  men, 
Let  witness  the  great  Julius)  with  my  art. 
If  ever  the  fair  sovereign  of  his  breast 
Should  in  aught  wish  him  more  amenable, 
Thou  mayst  trust  me,  and  I  should  not  despair 
To  move  his  mind  as  thou  mightst  signify." 

Not  quite  at  venture  Simon  drew  his  bow 
Thus,  for  from  common  fame  he  knew  how  keen 
That  very  moment  was  Poppaea's  wish, 
As  yet  denied  to  her  imperious  suit, 
To  supersede  Octavia  in  her  right 
And  be  the  consort  of  the  emperor. 
The  wily  sorcerer  warped  his  sinuous  way  : 
"  Here  I  have  seemed  to  sue  thee  for  myself ; 
But,  sooth  to  say,  I  plead  another's  cause. 
Wilt  thou  not  see  Drusilla?     Jewess,  who, 
Declined  from  royal  fortune  and  degree, 
Now  seeks  a  hearing  from  the  emperor 
For  her  lord  Felix,  late  in  Palestine 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO. 

A  ruler,  but  unhappily  since  fallen 

Under  some  cloud  of  doubt  at  Rome.     Beseech 

Thee,  give  my  liege  Drusilla  speech  with  thee. 

She  too  is  fair,  if  not  as  thou,  yet  fair. 

She  fain,  I  think,  would  meet  the  emperor 

In  person,  that  her  tears  might  touch  his  heart." 

Subtle  insinuation  was  conveyed 
By  Simon  saying  this,  which  the  quick  sense 
Of  the  imperial  favorite  caught ;  she  said  : 
"It  does  not  need  thy  lady  fair  should  first 
Wait  upon  me  ;  without  that,  she  shall  have 
Her  wished  access  and  opportunity. 
When  her  lord  Felix  presently  is  called 
To  hearing,  let  Drusilla  with  him  come. 
Her  privilege  she  will  find  before  prepared  ; 
So  much  I  freely  undertake  for  her." 

Poppsea  had  her  reasons  and  her  scheme ; 
And,  as  for  Simon,  he  said  to  himself : 
"Whichever  woman  prosper,  I  am  sped." 

Drusilla  girded  up  both  mind  and  will 
To  meet  her  one  imperial  chance  aright. 


633 


634 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII. 


Felix  went  like  a  culprit ;  like  a  queen 

Went  she,  her  peerless  beauty  wielded  all 

With  absolute  command  infallible  — 

Like  a  bright  weapon  edged  and  tempered  true 

Seen  wielded  in  the  perfect  swordsman's  hand. 

Slack  heed  the  youthful  emperor  paid  him 

Still  struggling  to  support  his  truculence; 

His  gaze  fixed  undisguisedly  on  her. 

Poppaea  from  behind  a  screen  set  nigh 

Saw  and  heard  all  ;  not  unsuspected  quite 

Of  the  alert  Drusilla  wise  as  she 

In  arts  of  ambush  for  waylaying  words 

Or  looks  meant  to  be  private  :     Nero  knew 

Poppaea  was  there. 

Drusilla  triumphing 

Joyed  in  her  heart  to  have  her  rival  see 
How  easy  usurpation  was  when  one 
Appeared  whose  very  birthright  was  to  reign  : 
Nero  was  willing  those  eavesdropping  ears 
And  eyes  should  witness  what  would  madden  them  ; 
He  took  a  wanton  mischievous  delight 
In  teasing  that  fierce  heart  to  jealousy. 
This,  too  much  drunken  with  her  glorying, 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  635 

Drusilla  did  not  guess,  and  overweened 

In  measure  of  the  conquest  she  had  won. 

The  emperor  made  the  hearing  short ;  dismissed 

Felix  dismayed  and  from  his  truculence 

Completely  broken  —  to  his  servile  state 

Remanded,  as  in  spirit  so  in  mien. 

Yet  did  not  Nero  so  his  cause  conclude  : 

He  said  frankly  to  Felix :  "  Go,  my  lord, 

Thy  way ;  I  shall  not  need  to  see  thee  more. 

Let  thou  this  lady  at  next  summons  come 

Without  thee  ;  she  shall  better  plead  thy  cause." 

Sentence  of  death  the  emperor  had  pronounced, 
Not  meaning  it,  upon  that  wretched  man. 
Felix  resumed  his  truculence,  alone 
Returning  with  Drusilla;  he  had  felt- 
Insensate  as  he  was,  could  not  but  feel- 
Her  separation  of  herself  from  him 
In  the  imperial  presence,  and  he  now 
Fiercely  upbraided  her.     But  she  was  soft 
Replying;  with  indignant  tenderness 
Purged  herself  clear  of  all  but  loving  guile 
Practiced  reluctantly  in  his  behoof - 
His,  sole,  her  husband,  father  to  her  son  !  — 


636  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII, 

To  serve  him  with  the  amorous  emperor. 
Felix  could  not  resist  the  witching  wiles 
Of  fondness  and  of  faithfulness  she  plied, 
And  he  became  a  plaything  in  her  hands 
Trusting  alike  her  loyalty  and  wit. 

She  presently  told  Simon  :  "  Full  come  now 
The  time  is  that  thy  master  should  enjoy 
Sleep  undisturbed  with  dreams.     Compound  for  me 
The  quieting  potion  that  thou  toldst  me  of. 
See  that  thou  make  it  strong  enough  ;  thy  lord 
Is  not  a  puny  weakling  to  be  soothed 
With  what  might  still  a  crying  babe ;  and  I  - 
Nay,  thou,  thou  thyself,  Simon,  shalt  commend 
His  opiate  to  his  lips."     The  sorcerer  shrugged 
His  shoulders  and  demurred  :  "  O  liege,  nor  thou, 
Nor  I,  with  our  own  hands,  should  to  his  lips 
Present  the  potion.     Let  a  trusted  slave 
Bear  it  unto  his  master's  bath  to-night, 
And  say  :  '  His  queen  unto  lord  Felix  sends 
Health  and  the  promise  of  more  quiet  sleep.' 
The  draught  is  drastic — for  a  lullaby  — 
Indeed  disturbing  in  its  first  effect ; 
But  safe  sleep  it  will  bring  whoever  drinks." 


Book  XXII.        DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  637 

"Thy  sedative  will  not  pain  my  lord  too  much?" 

Drusilla  mace  her  tone  expressionless 

In  asking  ;  and  in  like  wise  Simon  said  : 

"  Not  too  much,  lady — let  me  be  the  judge, 

Or  thee  who  lovest  him  equally  with  me." 

Drusilla  summoned  Syrus,  and  said  to  him  : 
"Thou  lovest  thy  master  and  thy  mistress  well- 
Better,  I  think,  of  late  than  once  thou  didst." 
"  My  master  and  my  mistress  both  I  love 
So  as,  I  trust,  to  serve  them  faithfully," 
The  slave,  a  little  hard  bestead,  replied. 
"  Aye,  I  have  noted  thy  true  love  for  us  ; 
Be  sure,  lad,  thou  shalt  nothing  lose  thereby," 
Drusilla  wheedlingly  resumed  ;  whereat 
Syrus  could  not  refrain  himself  from  saying 
In  so  much  spurning  of  the  sense  implied  : 
"  Yea,  noble  lady,  none  can  ever  lose 
Aught  by  obeying  Christ  the  Lord  in  heaven." 
"What  meanest  thou,  boy?"     Drusilla  sharply  said. 
"  Lord  other  than  lord  Felix  hast  thou  then  ? " 

Syrus  was  sorry  he  had  gone  so  far ; 
Yet  loyalty  to  Jesus  and  to  Paul 


638  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 

Wrought  in  him,  and,  supported  as  it  was 

With  instinct  of  unquenchable  revolt 

From  Felix  and  Drusilla  both  alike, 

Buoyed  him  and  kept  him  firm  in  that  assay. 

"  Yea,  madam,"  he  replied,  "  I  have  a  lord, 

Christ  Jesus,  crucified  once,  but  alive 

Now  and  ascended  far  above  all  height 

By  the  right  hand  of  God  in  heaven  set  down." 

'  That  is  of  Paul,  that  surely  is  of  Paul  ! ' 

Drusilla  reasoned  ;  then,  with  threatening  brow, 

To  Syrus  :  "  Whence  these  things  to  thee  ?     The 

truth - 
Thou  hast  heard  Paul,  and  learned  such  lies  from 

him?" 

"  I  have  heard  Paul,  yea,  madam,  and  have  learned 
From  him  such  truth  as  makes  me  true  to  thee 
Beyond  what  ever  I  had  been  before." 
"Aye,  aye,  no  doubt,"  Drusilla,  musing,  sneered. 
A  light  broke  in  upon  her  mind  ;  she  said : 
"  That  precious  runaway,  Onesimus, 
He,  I  suppose,  heard  Paul,  and  got  himself 
Puffed  up  with  these  same  notions  of  a  lord 
In  heaven,  which  set  him  feeling  free  of  us. 
Tell  me,  what  knowest  thou  of  Onesimus? 


Book  XXII.        DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  639 

Did  he  hear  Paul  ?     Where  is  he  now  ?     Tell  me, 
Thou  rogue,  for  verily  I  believe  thou  knowest." 

Shrewd  as  he  was,  Syrus  conceived  a  hope, 
A  sudden  simple  hope  that  if  the  truth, 
The  beautiful  mere  truth,  were  told  her  now, 
Drusilla,  yea,  Drusilla  even,  would  feel 
Its  power.     So  he  rehearsed  the  history, 
How  that  Onesimus,  induced  by  Paul, 
Had  gone  back  to  his  master  at  Colossae  ; 
How  that  his  master,  for  the  love  of  Paul 
Who  had  erst  won  him  to  the  love  of  Jesus, 
Had  bidden  Onesimus  return  to  Rome 
There  in  his  stead  to  minister  to  Paul ; 
How  that  Onesimus  had  gladly  come, 
And  was  that  moment  gratefully  with  Paul. 
Drusilla  listened,  but  she  gave  no  sign  ; 
She  had  in  truth  been  listening  absently, 
Absorbedly  considering  what  fresh  proof 
To  purpose  against  Paul  perhaps  was  here. 
She  said  to  Syrus  :  "  Aye,  a  pretty  tale 
To  entertain  thy  mistress'  ear  withal ! 
Why  never  can  you  people  tell  the  truth  ? 
You  always  seem  to  think  you  must  contrive 


640  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII. 

Some  falsehood,  though  the  truth  would  better 

serve. 

Well,  well,  it  is  your  way.      But  now,  my  lad, 
Be  ready,  when  thy  master  to  his  bath 
Shall  presently  repair,  bring  me  prompt  word. 
An  errand  I  shall  have  for  thee  to  him 
That  as  thou  lovest  him  thou  wilt  love  to  do." 

Syrus,  as  bidden  duly  coming,  heard : 
"  Take  this,  my  lad,  let  not  a  drop  be  spilled, 
And  bearing  it  to  thy  master  say  to  him, 
1  Thy  lady  sends  a  sleeping-draught  to  thee, 
And  with  it  wishes  health  and  placid  sleep.' ' 
Syrus,  deep  scrupling,  '  Fair  is  this,  or  foul?' 
Yet  found  no  way  not  to  fulfill  the  word. 
Felix  said  :  "  This  is  strange.     What  sayest  thou, 

boy? 
Thy  mistress  sends  me  this  ?    Thou  liest,  thou 

wretch  ! 
This   is    thine   own   work ;     thou   wouldst   do   me 

dead  ; 

Drink  it  thyself,  thou  varlet,  and  go  sleep. 
Thou  wilt  not?     Nay,  but  yea  thou  wilt,  thou  shalt; 
Now,  let  me  see  thee  drink  it  every  drop." 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  641 

And  with  his  trembling  hand  the  debauchee 
Gave  Syrus  back  the  chalice. 

"  Let  me  call 

My  mistress;  thou  shalt  hear  from  her  own  lips 
Whether  she  did  not  send  this  draught  to  thee, 
Charging  me  not  to  waste  one  precious  drop. 
I  know  I  should  offend  by  drinking  it. 
But  thou  mightst  take  it  somewhat  needfully, 
Trying  it  drop  by  drop  at  first  to  prove 
Its  virtue  and  its  fitness  to  thy  case." 
So  Syrus  pleaded  ;  and  his  master  said : 
"  That  is  not  spoken  like  a  poisoner. 
But  so  thou  darest,  rascal,  cast  a  doubt 
On  what  thy  mistress  sends  in  love  to  me? 
Thou  shalt  pay  dear  for  that ;  for  I  shall  tell 
Her  thou  presumedst  to  advise  to  me 
A  care,  forsooth,  how  I  partook  her  cheer. 
Here,  give  it  me,  and  I  will  toss  it  off- 
One  swallow  —  there  !  —  and  lay  me  down  to  sleep." 

Drusilla,  soon  thereafter  called  again 
To  audience  with  the  emperor,  high  in  hope 
Went  radiant  with  her  beauty  ;  but  was  vexed 
To  find  Poppaea  seated  by  his  side 


642 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII. 


As  if  assessor  of  his  judgment-throne. 

She  sat  resplendent  in  her  robes  of  state, 

As  queenly  in  her  person  and  her  port ; 

Yet  of  a  soft  delicious  loveliness 

That  took  Drusilla  captive  by  its  charm. 

Aspiring  as  she  did  to  rival  her 

Drusilla  thought  involuntary  thoughts 

Of  admiration  mixed  with  jealousy : 

'  No  wonder  that  she  sits  there  throned  by  him, 

Imperial  lovely  creature  that  she  is  ! 

That  bloom  of  youth  and  beauty  on  her  cheek ! 

The  tempting  undulation  of  repose 

Suggested  underneath  the  graceful  folds 

Of  vesture  that  flow  down  the  supple  limbs 

And  softening  into  curves  of  lusciousness 

The  statuesque  perfection  of  her  form. 

But  pampered  with  what  pains  of  luxury  ! 

They  say  five  hundred  asses  follow  her 

Wherever  she  makes  progresses  abroad 

And  spend  their  milk  to  brim  a  bath  for  her, 

That  her  sweet  flesh  and  delicate  lose  not 

That  melting  softness  and  that  lucency !' 

4  The  wanton  ! '   —so  she  virtuously  thought. 


B  ,k  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  643 

Poppaea  was  all  graciousness  ;  she  bade 
Drusilla  trust  her  friendship  utterly. 
She  had  had  herself  her  sorrow ;  whereat  tears 
Orbed  large  her  lucid  eyes  and  fairer  made. 
She  quoted  Dido  out  of  Virgil,  saying, 
If  not  inexperienced  in  distress, 
I  learn  to  succor  who  are  miserable/ 
My  Otho —  but  that  wound  is  yet  too  fresh ! 
Why  had  lord  Felix  died  so  suddenly  ? 
He  had  no  need  to  die  so  —  if  he  took 
His  own  life  rashly  in  despair;  his  cause 
Was  far  from  lost  —  in  fact,  was  safe  enough — " 
"  His  brother  Pallas,"  Nero  interposed, 
44  Had  seen  to  that ;  but  there  were  reasons  of  state 
Why  his  acquittal  should  not  yet  transpire." 
44  Indeed  I  comforted  my  spouse  with  hope 
All  that  I  could,"  Drusilla  wiped  a  tear 
Responding,  4%  and  it  was  not  suicide, 
I  think  now,  but  a  prompted  murder  ba 
"  Murder  is  rampant  even-where  in  Rome," 
The  Rhadamanthine  Nero  sadly  said ; 
41  But  we  think  little  of  it  till  it  stalks 
Into  the  sacred  circle  of  our  own 
And  strikes  down  husband,  mother,  ruthlessly  !  " 


644  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL'          Book  XXR 

Poppsea  and  the  emperor  joined  hands 
In  tacit  token  of  sweet  sympathy. 


'  Such  acting  !     Can  I  hope  to  equal  it  ?' 
Drusilla,  not  a  little  dashed  in  spirit, 
Said  to  herself;  'yet  let  me  not  despair.' 
"  Madam,  thy  husband's  death  must  be  avenged," 
So  Nero,  with  imperial  complaisance 
But  in  a  manner  to  dismiss  the  theme. 
Accepting  the  dismissal  meant,  and  yet 
Attaching  to  her  dutiful  reply 
A  hint  to  tempt  him  on,  Drusilla  said : 
"  I  thank  thy  majesty  for  saying  that ; 
And  the  same  stroke  will  many  crimes  avenge." 

Had  she  achieved  her  wish  ?    She  could  not  guess. 
Nero,  as  if  with  shift  of  aim,  inquired  : 
"  Thou  art  late  arrived  in  Rome  from  Palestine  ; 
What  dost  thou  chance  to  know  of  this  man  Paul, 
Prisoner  here,  like  thyself  Jew  in  blood  ?  " 
"  I  thank  thee  too  that  thou  hast  asked  me  that," 
Drusilla  with  judicial  candor  said  ; 
"  Aye,  Paul  is  of  one  kindred  with  myself, 
I  blush  to  say  it ;  he  is  a  renegade, 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  645 

Offscouring,  outcast  of  his  countrymen. 

I  pray  thee  judge  thou  not  our  race  from  him." 

"  But  our  sage  Seneca,  my  schoolmaster," 

Smiled  Nero  with  imperial  pleasantry, 

"  Speaks  otherwise  of  Paul.     I  bade  him  go 

Visit  the  Jew  philosopher  in  chains 

And  sound  him  of  the  depth  of  wisdom  his. 

He  brought  me  back  a  wonderful  report ; 

1  A  little  transcendental,'  so  he  said, 

'  Too  much  of  Oriental  mysticism, 

But  sane  at  bottom,  and  a  man  of  worth.' 

Tell  us  about  Paul.     I  should  be  much  pleased 

To  put  to  blush  my  old  oracular 

Smug  Seneca  with  proof  that  he  for  once 

At  least  mistook;  a  fine  old  gentleman 

Is  Seneca,  but  too  infallible  ; 

In  fact,  intolerably  infallible. 

I  cannot  stand  infallibility  — 

Except  my  own  and  thine  of  course,  my  dear 

Poppaea !  When  they  come  to  deify 

Us,  we  shall  have  to  be  infallible. 

That  is,  supposably  :  I  will  inquire 

Of  Seneca  ;  he  is  my  arbiter, 

Know,  madam,  in  these  minor  points,  as  is 


646  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 

My  superfine  good  friend  Petronius 

In  those  more  serious  points  of  etiquette." 

Drusilla  masked  amazement,  listening  keen 
While  this  young  portent  of  an  emperor 
Let  play  his  humor  of  hilarity. 
Eccentric  and  incalculable  curves 
Of  orbit,  pure  caprices  of  career, 
Might  seem  to  be  the  movement  of  his  speech; 
But  always,  from  whatever  apogee, 
It  failed  not  its  return  to  bitterness: 
The  playful  tiger  gnashed  his  ravin  fangs. 
Still  turning  toward  Drusilla,  he  went  on  : 
"  Behooves,  lady,  thine  emperor  of  the  world 
Should  be  well  schooled  in  all  things ;  I  abound 
In  tutors  at  my  elbows  to  nudge  me  ; 
Old  Burrus  there,  I  have  not  mentioned  him  - 
No  disrespect  intended  —  what  thinkest  thou  ? 
Schoolmasters  and  schoolmistresses  and  all, 
Is  there  not  risk  they  overstep  the  bound  ? 
So  few  know  where,  just  where,  the  limit  is. 
My  own  dear  mother — to  her  ashes  peace  !  — 
Sacred  as  was  her  right,  if  she  had  lived 
Might  yet  have  come  to  manage  overmuch." 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  647 

Popp^ea  even,  in  her  victorious  calm 
Of  conscious  power  beside  him,  winced  at  this 
As  at  slant  notice  served  upon  herself ; 
And  poor  Drusilla  hugged  a  shudder  down. 
But  Nero  rattled  on  licentiously  : 
"  What  was  I  saying  ?     Aye,  '  infallible ' 
And  toward  Poppaea  now  his  eye  he  turned  - 
"  We  two  shall  have  to  be  infallible  - 
I  take  it  so  —  when  they  make  gods  of  us. 
What  a  bore  that,  to  be  infallible ! 
Bore  to  be  anything  because  one  must ! 
Let  us  take  it  as  a  joke  and  not  be  bored  — 
Uproarious  joke,  my  dear,  for  me  and  thee 
To  pose  as  gods,  while  we  hold  both  our  sides 
Lest  we  split  laughing  and  upset  mankind  ! 

"  But  for  the  present  here  is  help  arrived, 
Welcome,  while  we  stay  only  mortals  yet, 
To  make  that  old  prig  of  a  Seneca 
Come  down  once  from  his  magisterial  throne." 
Wherewith  he  to  Drusilla  spoke  once  more : 
"Madam,  we  listen,  tell  us  about  Paul." 

Besides  that  menace  slanted  in  his  words, 
The  gamesome  emperor  hurt  Drusilla  sore 


648 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 


Demonstrating  before  her  thus  a  firm 
Accord  and  understanding  knit  between 
Himself  and  this  Poppaea  ;  worse  to  bear, 
Poppaea's  easy  air  of  affable  — 
A  condescension  equal  to  his  own 
Toward  her,  Drusilla,  air  as  of  a  queen 
Deigning  her  scepter  toward  a  suppliant ! 
Drusilla  would  have  felt  it  like  a  touch 
Of  tonic  to  her  blood,  could  she  have  found 
One  least  hint  that  Poppsea  in  her  heart 
Hated  her  :  but  Poppaea  far  too  well 
Was  mistress  of  her  part ;  she  sweetly  smiled 
Exquisite  discomposure  on  her  foe. 

With  sheer  exertion  of  her  will,  or  helped 
Only  with  the  delight  to  injure  Paul  — 
Daunted,  yet  with  a  front  of  dauntlessness — 
Drusilla  entered  on  her  perjury. 
By  the  reaction  of  her  eloquence 
Upon  herself  reflected  from  the  fixed 
Admiring  heed  she  won,  she  plucked  up  heart 
Of  buoyance  to  be  brilliant  more  and  more 
As  she  went  on  and  told  the  emperor, 
Him  chiefly,  and  at  length  not  her  at  all, 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  649 

How  Paul  was  a  disturber  everywhere  ; 
He  at  Jerusalem  had  raised  a  mob 
And  tumult  of  his  outraged  countrymen 
Ao-ainst  himself ;  they,  out  of  loyalty, 

£> 

Would  then  and  there  have  rent  him  limb  from 

limb, 

But  that  the  chiliarch  intervened  to  save 
The  wretch  from  violence  — not  of  the  law, 
Though  well  deserved  — and  under  escort  thence 
Sent  him  to  her  lord  Felix,  governor 
At  Csesarea,  to  be  held  and  judged. 
Felix,  who  was  the  heart  of  lenity, 
Not  bearing  to  condemn  him  for  his  crimes, 
Postponed  his  trial,  until  Festus  came 
Successor  to  her  husband  dispossessed 
Of  kingdom  for  his  too  much  clemency  - 
Fault,  yet  a  noble  fault,  and  Caesar-like 
('  My  Otho  ! '  thy  word,  madam  ;  '  my  Felix  ! ' 

mine)- 

Then  Festus  on  the  point  to  sentence  him 
Was  thwarted  by  the  culprit's  hardihood; 
Desperate  hardihood  seeking  reprieve 
At  least  from  doom  by  refuge  in  appeal 
To  Caesar. 


650  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 

"  Aye,  a  Roman  citizen 

Paul  has  devised  some  scheme  of  fraud  to  be  — 
Gross  profanation  of  a  sacred  right 
Perverted  to  asylum  thus  from  crime ! 
Paul  is  a  master  mind  —  no  need  to  swear 
Falsely  that  he  is  not ;  wise  Seneca 
Was  not  so  much  to  blame  for  being  deceived 
In  him,  so  upright-seeming,  plausible. 
Their  best  man,  sagest,  subtlest  of  them  all, 
The  Jewish  councillors  picked  out  to  send 
Hither  with  Paul  to  make  his  sentence  sure. 
Alas,  the  culprit  was  too  deep  for  him. 
One  night  on  shipboard  in  the  voyage  hither 
He  sought  to  bribe  the  soldier  guarding  him 
To  make  away  with  this  Jew  Shimei 
By  tossing  him  in  darkness  overboard. 
That  plot  did  not  succeed  ;  but  Paul  contrived 
To  hoodwink  the  centurion  and  make  him 
Believe  the  scheme  to  murder  was  not  his, 
Paul's,  against  Shimei,  but  Shimei's  against  Paul  ! 
So  Shimei  was  thrown  into  chains,  while  Paul 
Stalked  the  deck  free,  though  for  form's  sake  still 

watched. 
This  lasted,  till  the  very  gods  in  heaven 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  65  r 

Had  pity  on  poor  Shimei  and  with  stroke 

Of  lightning  set  him  free  from  men  by  death." 

"  So,  is  a  stroke  of  lightning  pity  then, 
Sometimes,"  said  Nero,  "with  the  gods  in  heaven? 
A  piquant  way  to  pity  !     We,  my  dear"  — 
The  emperor  with  a  frolic  feline  look 
That  made  Poppsea  shiver  turned  to  her  — 
"When  we  are  gods  on  earth,  may  imitate 
Those  our  facetious  cousins  in  the  skies 
With  many  a  stroke  of  lightning  launched  in  pity  !  " 

An  almost  boyish  blithesomeness  lit  up 
The  handsome  face  of  Nero  saying  this  ; 
Had  it  not  been  for  frightful  lightning  strokes 
Too  frequent  sent  in  deadly  earnest  down 
From  that  Olympus  of  imperial  power, 
All  might  have  seemed  but  pranksome  playfulness. 
Drusilla  —  with  profound  obeisance  bowed - 
After  due  deferent  pause  if  it  should  please 
His  majesty  to  be  facetious  farther, 
Her  weaving  at  her  loom  of  lies  resumed  : 
"  Thou  wouldst  in  vain,  O  emperor,  inquire 
Of  that  centurion  Julius  for  the  truth  ; 
He  himself  fell  a  helpless  prey  to  Paul. 


652  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII. 

Why,  on  the  wretched  island  where  our  ship 
Was  stranded,  lost,  and  where  all  winter  we 
Were  cooped  up  waiting  for  reluctant  spring, 
Day  after  day  did  that  oblivious  man 
Attend  upon  his  prisoner  and  a  crew, 
That  prisoner's  dupes  about  him  clustering  ever, 
To  hear  long  tales  which  seemed  to  cast  a  spell 
On  whoso  heard  them  and  bewitch  his  sense. 
I  grieve  to  say  a  Roman  knight  was  found 
There,  Sergius  Paulus,  to  lend  countenance  — 
A  name  proconsular  so  much  defiled  ! 
Yea,  and  the  Roman  governor  of  the  isle, 
Publius,  fell  openly  into  Paul's  snare. 

"  No  very  serious  matter  it  might  seem, 
So  far,  but  hearken  what  a  sequel  came. 
A  worthy  member  of  our  court  abroad, 
Who  loyally  our  fortune  followed  still, 
And  follows  —  O  Sire,  in  this  degenerate  age, 
Happy  if  ancient  loyalty  survives  !  — 
Simon,  a  man  of  merit  and  device, 
Saw  when,  one  morning  on  an  open  hill 
Withdrawn,  Paul  made  a  demonstration  dire 
Before  all  these  assembled  to  behold 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  653 

Whom  I  have  named,  what  he  could  do,  and  would, 

With  practice  of  his  wicked  magic  arts. 

He  smote  a  woman  of  his  company 

Who  had  offended  him  dead  at  a  stroke 

Of  incantation  that  his  lips  let  fall. 

Simon  will  tell  thee,  that  thou  hear  first-hand. 

"But  to  crown  all  "    -and  here  Drusilla's  voice 
Faltered,  and  her  eyes,  eloquent  before 
With  fine  indignant  passion,  now  with  tears 
Dimmed,  pathos  tenfold  eloquent  took  on  — 
"  Aye,  to  crown  all,  no  doubt  my  Felix  fell 
A  victim  to  his  ingrate  wickedness. 
Our  slave-boy  Syrus  bore  his  lord  a  drink 
Pretended  as  of  virtue  to  bring  sleep  - 
Which  my  poor  Felix  long  had  needed  sore  !  — 
It  brought  sleep,  but  the  sleep  it  brought  was  death. 
Alas,  my  Felix !     And,  last  infamy, 
That  slave  lad  had  been  primed  by  Paul  to  lay 
Her  consort's  murder  at  his  spouse's  door ! 
The  frontless  varlet  had  the  face  to  tell 
His  mistress  to  her  very  teeth  that  she 
Had  herself  sent  that  sleeping-draught  by  him 
To  Felix  as  he  took  his  evening  bath. 


654  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-          Book  xxn- 

It  was  Paul's  sorcery  made  the  boy  believe, 
Against  his  own  right  senses,  what  was  false. 
I  should  have  told  thee  how  in  lesser  sort, 
That  is,  in  matter  of  estate  —  light  thing 
Indeed  in  contrast  of  such  harm  to  life  — 
We  had  before  this  suffered  from  Paul's  hands ; 
For  he  beguiled  away  a  slave  of  ours  — 
By  name  Onesimus,  a  Phrygian  lad- 
vThrough  whom  perverted  first  himself  from  faith 
This  other  servant  Syrus  was  seduced. 
No  end  to  that  wretch  Paul's  devices  evil ! 
Let  him  go  free,  nay,  let  him  only  live, 
Though  in  a  prison,  the  emperor  has  a  foe 
Cannot  indeed  unfix  him  from  his  throne  — 
Where  he  sits  firm  as  on  Olympus  Jove 
(If  thus  a  faithful  Jew  may  fit  her  speech)  — 
But  will  the  quick  seeds  of  sedition  sow 
To  fill  the  empire  with  their  harvest  wild. 
Paul  teaches  all  men  of  another  king 
Than  Caesar  whose  sole  right  it  is  to  reign." 

While  thus  Drusilla  at  the  emperor's  ear 
Artfully  wove  false  witness  against  Paul, 
Paul  in  his  chains  was  beating  out  his  heart 


Book  XXII.        DRUS1LLA  AND  NERO. 

In  throbbing  letters  of  such  strain  as  this  : 
4  If  any  consolation,  then,  in  Christ 
'  There  be,  if  any  comfort  sweet  of  love, 
4  If  in  the  Spirit  any  fellowship, 
4  If  any  moving  of  compassion  even, 
4  Make  my  joy  full,  beloved,  that  ye  be 
4  Like-minded  each  with  other,  the  same  love 
4  Within  you  all,  one  spirit,  one  accord  ; 
4  Far  be  contention,  and  vainglory  far, 
4  But  all  in  lowly-mindedness  esteem 
'  Each  one  his  fellow  better  than  himself. 
*  Look  not  each  man  toward  his  own  things  alone, 
4  But  each  man  also  toward  the  other's  look. 
4  This  mind  be  in  you  which  in  Jesus  was: 
'  He,  in  His  right,  was  of  the  form  of  God. 
4  Yet  thought  not  his  equality  with  God 
4  A  thing  to  be  held  fast  to  as  His  spoil ; 
'  But  freely  made  himself  of  no  repute, 
'  Taking  upon  Him  the  bond-servant's  form 
4  And  entering  the  similitude  of  men. 
4  Nor  yet  was  this  enough  ;  He,  being  found 
4  In  fashion  as  a  man,  humbled  Himself 
'  Still  farther  and  became  obedient, 
4  To  the  degree  of  dying —  not  a  death 


656  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.  Book  XXII. 

'  Such  as  befalls  the  common  lot  of  men, 

'  But  that  most  dreadful  death  upon  the  cross 

'  This  is  the  reason  why  the  righteous  God 

•  Exalted  Him  so  highly  and  the  name 

'  Gave  Him  that  over  every  name  prevails, 

'That  in  the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee 

'  Should  bow,  of  beings  in  heaven,  of  beings  on 

earth, 

'  Of  beings  under  earth,  and  every  tongue 
1  Confess  that  Jesus  Christ  is  Lord  of  all 
'  Unto  the  glory  of  the  Father  God. 

'  So,  my  beloved,  as  ye  have  obeyed 
'  Me  ever,  not  as  in  my  presence  only 
1  But  in  my  absence  now  much  more,  work  out 
'  Your  own  salvation  with  much  wholesome  fear, 
'  Awed  in  the  thought  that  God  Himself  it  is 
'  That  in  you  works  alike  to  will  and  work 
'As  seemeth  in  His  holy  pleasure  good. 
'  No  murmurings  and  no  questionings  allow, 
4  That  ye  may  blameless  be  and  void  of  guile, 
1  Children  of  God,  open  to  no  rebuke, 
'  Among  a  crooked  people  and  perverse, 
'  Full  in  the  midst  of  whom  ye  shine  as  lights 


Book  XXII.         DRUSILLA  AND  NERO.  657 

4  Set  in  the  darkness  of  a  world  of  sin  ; 
'  Steadfastly  holding  forth  the  word  of  life, 
'  That  in  the  day  of  Christ  I  may  rejoice 
'  As  having  not  in  vain  run  this  my  race, 
'And  not  in  vain  accomplished  all  my  toil. 
'  But,  let  it  even  be  mine  to  be  poured  out, 
'  As  on  an  altar  set  for  sacrifice, 
'  A  victim  for  the  service  of  your  faith, 
'  Know  I  rejoice  and  with  you  all  rejoice; 
'  And  for  the  selfsame  cause  rejoice  all  ye, 
'Yea,  and  in  fellowship  with  me  rejoice.' 

From  prison  this,  in  face  of  martyrdom  ! 
Whatever  fell,  Paul's  victory  was  secure. 
Such  love,  such  faith,  such  hope,  such  power  in 

Christ 

Of  joy,  such  hold  on  heaven,  was  to  defeat 
Present  or  future,  harm  or  threat  of  harm  — 
From  earth,  from  hell,  aimed  —  inaccessible, 
Safe  as  a  star  smiling  above  a  storm. 

So  then  Paul  wrote,  and  such  himself  he  was, 
While  those  vain  wicked  wished  to  work  him  ill. 

Though  the  twain  listened  with  all  courteous  heed 


658 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.  Book  XXII. 


To  what  Drusilla  told  and  acted  then, 

Nor  Nero  nor  Poppaea  was  deceived ; 

But  both  admired,  and  this  Drusilla  felt. 

Having  retrieved  thus  in  some- part  her  loss, 

She  heard  demurely  while  the  emperor  said : 

"  Thou  understandest,  madam,  this  is  not 

A  formal  sitting  of  our  court  august. 

I  oft  advise  myself  beforehand  thus  — 

Though  seldom,  lady,  so  agreeably  — 

What  the  real  merits  of  an  issue  are. 

I  have  much  enjoyed  thy  story — and  thyself  — 

And  I  shall  hope  to  see  thee  yet  again. 

Meantime,  I  pray  thee,  send  thy  Simon  to  me ; 

I  might  find  use  for  such  a  man  as  he." 

Poppaea,  to  play  out  her  part  of  queen, 
Added  a  gracious  word  :  "And  come  thyself 
To  see  me  —  by  the  emperor's  leave  assumed  — 
And  teach  me  to  be  Jewess,  such  as  thou. 
It  must  be  lovely  beyond  anything 
To  hate  so  and  abide  so  beautiful  ! " 

She  had  mixed  a  cunning  bitter  with  her  sweet ; 
Perhaps  her  Nero  so  would  be  forewarned  ! 


BOOK     XXI  II. 
NERO   AND   SIMON. 


Simon,  sent  by  Drusilla  to  the  emperor,  finds  it  impossible 
to  reach  the  imperial  presence  without  help  from  Poppaea, 
who  grants  him  her  favor  only  on  condition  that  he  will  serve 
her  wish  at  need.  The  crafty  sorcerer  buys  his  way  with  the 
necessary  promises.  Nero  flouts  Simon  with  disdainful  irony 
and  sarcasm,  which  excites  the  sorcerer's  resentment.  This 
feeling  he  dissembles,  while  he  counsels  the  unfaithful  impe 
rial  husband  how  to  rid  himself  of  his  young  empress  Octavia 
—  the  sorcerer  being  all  the  time  in  doubt  whether  it  is  with 
Drusilla  or  with  Poppaea  that  the  emperor,  who  speaks  darkly, 
would  supplant  her. 

Nero  at  length  dismisses  Simon,  bidding  him  tell  his  mis 
tress  the  emperor's  desire  to  pay  her  a  secret  visit.  This 
message  the  sorcerer  gratifies  his  own  spleen  by  conveying  to 
Drusilla  in  terms  the  most  offensive  to  her  pride.  She  bursts 
out  in  violent  anger  and  spurning  ;  but  Simon  shows  his  mis 
tress  how  she  may  salve  in  a  measure  the  hurt  to  her  dignity, 
and  at  the  same  time  serve  her  hatred  of  Paul,  by  making  it 
a  condition  of  her  complaisance  that  the  emperor  shall  first 
put  the  apostle  and  his  companions  to  death.  The  sorcerer 
returns  with  her  reply  to  Nero,  who  again,  and  even  more 
deeply  than  before,  stirs  the  Jew's  heart  to  deadly  hatred. 
Simon  plots  a  wild  scheme  to  have  his  revenge.  Meantime 
with  change  in  certain  officers  of  the  government  the  aspect 
of  affairs  grows  threatening  for  Paul  and  his  fellow-Christians. 
Onesimus  and  Syrus  are  arrested  and  hurried  away  to  suffer 
on  the  rack. 


NERO  AND    SIMON. 

Drusilla,  eager  in  uncertain  hope 
To  meet  the  pleasure  of  the  emperor, 
Promptly  sent  Simon  to  him  as  he  said. 
She  charged  her  minion  to  bend  all  his  craft 
To  win  his  mistress  way  that  she  in  proof 
Upon  that  youngster  emperor  of  the  world 
Might,  without  let  from  other  present,  try 
If  for  once  only  what  of  power  was  left 
Her,  after  such  misfortunes  suffered  late, 
To  steal  possession  of  the  hearts  of  men. 
"  Consider,  Simon,  what  might  not  I  do 
For  thee,  once  seated  in  that  place  of  power?" 
She  with  such  words  and  with  a  subtle  smile 
Of  deep  insinuation  cheered  him  forth. 

But  Simon,  in  an  outer  anteroom 
Of  the  imperial  palace  with  its  guards  — 
Many  removes  from  where  the  emperor  was  — 
Long  hung  in  waiting  day  by  day  in  vain. 
At  length  Poppaea,  not  the  emperor, 
Sent  gracious  word  that  she  would  see  that  Jew, 


662  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIII. 

"  Thou  hadst  perhaps  forgotten  who  it  was," 

The  favorite,  drunken-fond  of  power  nor  less 

Of  demonstration  too  of  power,  began, 

To  dash  the  sorcerer  in  his  confidence  — 

"  Say,  hadst  thou  not  forgotten  who  it  was 

Gave  thee  for  thy  Drusilla  her  desired 

Access  to  the  imperial  presence  late?" 

Simon  saw  what  she  wanted,  and  was  quick 

To  humor  to  the  full  her  proud  caprice. 

He  readily  commanded  to  his  face 

A  trouble  of  confusion  and  chagrin, 

And  stammered  something    inarticulate. 

The  merciless  Poppaea  pressed  her  point : 

"  Was  it  to  me,  or  to  somebody  else, 

I  heard  thee  offer  service  of  thine  art? 

Methinks  thou  spokest,  or  perhaps  I  dreamed, 

Of  certain  potencies  thou  couldst  exert 

On  my  behalf  —  or  some  one's  —  if  thou  wouldst, 

To  make  at  need  a  mind  amenable 

To  reason  that  might  otherwise  resist?" 

Simon  her  humor  flattered  to  its  height, 
And  artfully  grew  more  and  more  confused 
Before  her,  till  he  judged  her  satisfied 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  663 

That  his  humiliation  was  complete. 

Then,  with  abject  profession  of  remorse 

And  shame  that  he  so  far  forgot  her  due 

As  to  seek  audience  with  the  emperor 

In  any  way  other  than  through  herself, 

He  humbly  asked  her  what  her  wish  might  be ; 

In  short,  renewed  the  proffer  of  himself 

To  be  her  faithful  servant  all  in  all. 

"  But  art  thou  not  in  prior  duty  bound 
To  that  Drusilla  fair  of  thine?"  she  asked. 
"Yea,  doubtless,  "  the  adroit  dissembler  said- 
A  protestation  of  deep  loyalty 
To  his  old  mistress,  not  to  be  seduced, 
Commingling  strangely  in  his  look  and  tone 
With  offer  to  be  serviceable  now. 
"  Supposing  beautiful  Drusilla's  aims 
And  mine  should  clash  ?  "   Poppaea  said.      But  he  : 
"That  were  calamity  indeed  —  for  her  ; 
The  far  more  beautiful  must  needs  prevail. 
She  has  perhaps  her  too  aspiring  hopes  ; 
Her  hopes,  I  own,  I  have  no  heart  to  dash. 
Let  her  nurse  them  ;  but  be  it  mine  meanwhile 
To  watch  and  strive  they  do  not  pierce  the  breast 


664  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-         Book  XXIII. 

That  suckles  them  in  vain."     "What  meanest 

thou ?  " 

Poppaea  asked.     "  Why,  this,"  the  sorcerer  said, 
"Lady  Drusilla's  interests  and  her  aims 
May  not  agree.     They  do  not,  if  her  aims 
And  thine,  O  empress,  clash.      Her  interests, 
True  interests,  I  mean,  she  best  consults 
In  being  to  her  sovereign  loyal  liege. 
I  serve  the  subject,  when  I  serve  the  queen." 

"'  Empress,'  thou  namest  me,"  Poppsea  said. 
"  Thou  knowest  I   am  not  empress."     "  Yea,  I 

know," 

Said  Simon,  "empress  not  in  name  —  as  yet." 
"  Another,"  with  deep  implication  said 
Poppaea,  "that  imposing  title  bears." 
"  Were  it  not  so,"  with  apt  intelligence, 
Made  instant  answer  Simon,  "  thou  wouldst  not 
Need  modestly  disclaim  the  title  —  thou 
Who  worthily  possessest  now  the  power." 
"  Not  all  the  power,"  Poppaea  sagely  said  ; 
"  Some  real  part  of  the  power  is  in  the  name. 
Help  me  to  win  the  name,  and  fix  thy  price." 
"  My  price  would  be  the  pleasure  I  should  have 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  665 

To  see  thee  sitting,  where  thy  right  ere  now 
Had   placed    thee,   on   the   half   throne   of   the 

world  " 

So  Simon  with  devout  obeisance  said. 
Then  added  :  "  If  the  emperor  should  suspect  — 
But,  pardon,  thou  hast  asked  me  nothing  yet." 
"  I  ask  thee  now,  speak  freely  out  to  me 
All  that  is  in  thy  mind,"  Poppsea  said. 
"  If  then,  I  say,  the  emperor  should  suspect  - 
Of  course  with  ground  for  the  suspicion  (that 
Well  understood,  no  innocent  to  be  wronged)  " 
And  Simon    grinned  intolerably  a  wry 
Involuntary  grin  of  import  such, 
So  horribly  conveyed,  that  almost  she, 
Poppsea,  shuddered  in  recoil  from  him- 
"  Suspect,  with  reason  shown,  a  full  supply, 
That  the  young  partner  of  his  bed  and  throne, 
Octavia,  is  less  worthy  of  his  faith 
Than  were  to- 

"  Aye,  I  see,  I  see,"  broke  in 
Poppaea,  her  instinctive  first  recoil 
Quite  overmastered  ;  it  was  of  the  flesh, 
Mere  backward  creep  of  muscle  and  of  nerve, 


666  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIII. 

Repugnance  of  the  inner  spirit  none. 
"  But  to  supply  the  reason  — 

"Shall  be  mine," 

Said  Simon,  finishing  her  arrested  speech. 
He  undertook  at  venture  in  the  dark  ; 
But  to  gain  time,  and  to  secure  access, 
His  present  errand,  to  the  emperor, 
He  added,  with  demure  and  downcast  look: 
"  The  ground  beneath  us  now  is  treacherous ; 
I  could  with  greater  freedom  utter  all 
That  might  be  needful  in  such  case  as  this, 
To  other  ear  than  thine,  O  empress  fair, 
Or  any  woman's.     Let  me,  pray  thee,  see 
The  emperor.     Thou  shalt  be  well  satisfied, 
I  pledge  me,  with  the  issue  when  it  comes." 

So  Simon  won  him  clear  for  then,  and  went  — 
His  way  made  easy  by  Poppaea's  part ; 
Yet  not  as  with  her  privity,  much  less 
As  with  her  favor  openly  displayed  — 
To  his  wished  waiting  on  the  emperor. 

"Thou  art  a  go-between,  I  understand," 
Abruptly  and  ambiguously  said 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  667 

The  emperor  to  Simon.     Simon  winced 

A  little,  he  so  little  wont  to  wince. 

What  did  it  mean?     Had  Nero  overheard 

Through  some  eavesdropper  what  had  just  now 

passed 

Between  him  and  Poppaea?     Was  he  vexed  ? 
Himself  at  least  was  inly  vexed  to  hear 
The  opprobrious  name  of  'go-between'  applied, 
Where  he  had  hoped  for  honor  as  a  mage 
And  wielder  of  weird  supernatural  power. 
He  wavered,  and  found  nothing  to  reply. 

"  Thou  art  modest,"  Nero  said,  with  irony ; 
"  But  I  have  heard  thy  fame,  thou  needst  not  blush, 
Pallas  has  told  me  how  as  go-between 
Thou  servedst  his  brother  Felix  in  the  East, 
Finding  for  him  a  really  royal  spouse. 
I  hope  thy  go-between  officiousness 
Ended  with  bringing  the  devoted  pair 
Together?     Nothing  after  had  to  do 
With  the  late  parting  of  the  same  by  death?" 

Simon  was  stumbled  at  such  raillery, 
Uneasily  uncertain  what  it  meant. 
He  writhed  and  wriggled  on  his  feet ;  but  deemed 


668  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIII. 

The  emperor  best  were  pleased  to  have  his  will 
Of  banter,  unreplied  to — banter  felt 
As  far  too  formidable  for  right  zest, 
Proceeding  from  a  prince,  and  such  a  prince ! 

"  Wilt  ply  again  thy  skill  of  go-between, 
And  faithfully,  for  me?"  the  emperor  said. 
A  question  fairly  asked,  which  must  be  met  : 
Could  it  concern  —  Poppaea?     In  such  case, 
The  office  of  the  'go-between  '-  —  as  pleased 
This  jocular  young  ruler  of  mankind 
To  name  him  ignominiously  —  might  take 
A  dignity  almost  imperial  on  ; 
Simon  would  frame  reply  comportably : 
"  If  the  august  will  of  his  majesty, 
The  emperor  of  the  world,  should  condescend 
To  make  one  most  unworthy  of  the  grace 
In  any  wise  elect  ambassador 
To  serve  the  imperial  pleasure  at  what  court 
Soever  of  such  beauty  as  were  fit 
To  be  assumed  for  partner  of  his  throne  — 
Why,  Simon  could  but  pledge  his  loyalty, 
And  trust  his  wonted  fortune  might  not  fail." 

"  Thou  takest  thy  pander's  part  full  seriously," 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  669 

The  emperor,  bantering  still,  but  curious,  said  : 
"  Perhaps  our  grave  ambassador  of  love 
Might,  from  his  pregnant  wit,  even  nominate 
The  court  of  beauty  where  befitting  were 
The  majesty  of  empire  should  pay  suit. 
The  Roman  state  impersonate  in  me 
Gives  ear." 

Played  with  in  such  ambiguous  wise 
Simon  was  much  perplexed  to  choose  his  way. 
He  flung  himself  on  rumor,  and  replied  : 
"The  Roman  state,  embodied  in  thyself 
Most  worthily,  most  worthily  has  made 
Its  choice  already  ;  mine  to  serve  that  choice." 
"  Thou  art  an  oracle ;  who  knows  so  much, 
Should  needs  know  more,"  the  emperor  teasing  said. 
"  Advise  me,  thou  who  knowest  so  easily 
What  my  choice  is,  how  I  may  win  my  choice. 
Consider  that  the  emperor  of  the  world 
Is  after  all  the  veriest  slave  in  Rome  ; 
The  rascal  people  lord  it  over  him. 
I  have  no  trouble  with  the  senators, 
They  follow  like  whipped  spaniels  at  my  heels  - 
The  reverend  'conscript  fathers,'  to  be  sure  ! 


6 70  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIII. 

But  the  great  Roman  people  is  a  spell 
I  am  afraid  of ;   I  must  please  the  mob, 
Who  will  not  let  me  marry  as  I  would ; 
The  many-headed  monster  mob  of  Rome." 
The  emperor  gave  his  peevish  humor  vent, 
Contemptuously  regardless  of  who  heard. 

But  Simon  was  alert  and  caught  his  cue. 
"  The  tyrant  mob  may  easily  be  fooled," 
He  said  with  politic  suggestion  deep  ; 
"  Fooled  rightly,  they  will  clamor,  not  against, 
But  for,  the  emperor's  wish."     "  Open  thy  thought, " 
Said  Nero;  "be  an  oracle  indeed  — 
For  wisdom  ;  for  equivocation,  not." 
"What  the  imperial  wish  is,"  Simon  said, 
"  It  were  impiety  in  me  to  guess. 
But  grant  it  were  a  prince's  natural  wish 
To  change  a  barren  or  a  faithless  spouse 
For  one  more  suited  to  his  princely  mind, 
Ways  might  be  found  to  make  his  realm  agree." 
"Suppose  the  case,  then  ;  how  wouldst  thou  pro 
ceed?" 

So,  as  if  only  idly,  Nero  asked. 
"  Let  me  suppose  a  case  of  faithlessness," 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  67 

Simon,  with  study  of  the  emperor's  face, 
Adventured  ;  "  that  is  the  more  simple  sort, 
More  likely,  or  at  least  of  easier  proof. 
The  offended  prince  reluctantly  succumbs 
To  testimony  —  whereof  the  supply 
Will  manifestly  equal  the  demand  " — 
This  with  both  look  and  tone  sententious  said  — 
"  He  makes  his  loving1  people  confidant 
Of  his  misfortune  —  which  is  also  theirs - 
And  with  one  voice  they  generously  cry, 
1  Put  her  away,  and  wed  a  worthy  mate.' ' 
The  emperor  listening  sank  into  a  muse, 
Which  Simon  as  of  happy  omen  took. 

Nero  was  deeper  than  the  sorcerer  guessed ; 
His  muse  had  really,  as  that  worthy  framed 
His  speech  to  have  it,  of  Octavia  been 
And  of  Poppaea  in  Octavia's  room ; 
But  for  his  present  prurient  whim  the  young 
Imperial  profligate  was  fain  to  make 
Misdeem  the  Jewish  pander  otherwise. 
As  if  Drusilla,  not  Poppsea,  had, 
Unnamed  between  them,  been  that  worthier  one 
Of  whom  the  sorcerer  darkly  all  the  time 


672  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIII. 

Had  hinted,  and  whom  he  himself  the  while 
Had  understood  him  tacitly  to  mean, 
Nero  now  said,  rousing  from  reverie  — 
Ejaculation  like  soliloquy  : 
"  Worthy  to  be  the  consort  of  a  king ! 
Perhaps  well  widowed  —  for  some  nobler  fate 
Hers  by  the  right  of  beauty  and  of  wit  — 
Drusilla,  thy  good  mistress,  that  born  queen ! 
Tell  her  this  from  the  emperor,  and  ask 
When  she  will  let  the  emperor  himself 
Pay  her  his  personal  homage  at  her  court ; 
Some  night  it  needs  must  be,  and  in  disguise  — 
To  fool  the  prying  people  as  thou  saidst. 
Prove  thou  thy  prowess  as  ambassador, 
And  bring  me  speedy  word  of  thy  success/' 
The  emperor  let  the  sorcerer  retire. 

A  little  pleased,  but  disappointed  more, 
Simon  his  message  to  his  mistress  brought. 
He  wreaked  his  disappointment  upon  her, 
By  rendering  Nero's  proffer  of  himself 
In  terms  the  most  offensive  to  her  pride  : 
"  Know,  O  my  lady  —  empress,  by  just  right 
Of  high  ambition  and  of  mettle  high  — 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  673 

Lucius  Domitius  Nero  Caesar,  proud 

Young  wearer  of  the  crown  that  Julius  wore  — 

Or  would  not  wear,  but  three  times  put  it  by- 

Successor  to  the  great  Augustus,  who 

Earth's  jarring  fragments  welded  to  a  whole, 

And  settled  order  government  and  peace - 

Conscious  of  his  own  merit,  condescends 

To  ease  his  aching  shoulders  of  the  weight 

Of  empire  by  indulging  now  and  then 

In  certain  little  pranks  of  pleasantry, 

More  lively,  as  might  seem,  than  dignified. 

He  dons  him  his  disguise  and  sallying  forth 

Goes  roystering  through  the  streets  incognito, 

Attended  by  a  well-becoming  rout 

Of  boon  companions  in  hilarity - 

Much  to  the  scandal  of  good  citizens, 

Specially  such  as  happen  to  be  out ; 

These  often  get  quite  tumbled  up  and  down 

In  the  wild  frolic  of  imperial  sport. 

They  make  the  night  —  these  rouses  are  by  night - 

Merry  with  jocund  laughter,  and  with  song 

That  would  be  ribald  save  that  it  is  sung 

By  a  divine  Augustus  in  his  cups. 

I  am  permitted,  as  ambassador 


6 74  THE  EpfC  OF  PA  UL>         Book  XXIII. 

From  this  imperial  personage,  to  bear 

Thee  courteous  salutations,  and  to  say 

The  emperor  deems  thee  worthy  to  be  queen, 

Thinks  thou  perhaps  wast  widowed  in  good  time 

To  make  thee  to  a  nobler  fortune  free ; 

Begs  thou  wilt  name  the  night  when  he  may  come 

In  person  and  pay  imperial  court  to  thee." 

"  This,  Simon,  is  impudence  insufferable, 
Equal  affront  to  Nero  and  to  me," 
Drusilla  in  a  flame  of  fury  said. 
"  Thou  hast  overstepped  thy  limit  jesting  so. 
Repair  thy  fault  forthwith,  or  suffer  for  it ! 
Tell  me  in  terms,  and  without  flourishes, 
What  word,  if  any,  the  emperor  charged  thee  with." 
Maliciously  unmoved,  the  sorcerer  said  : 
"With  some  loss  doubtless  —  most  regrettable, 
Granted  ;  yet  scarce  avoidable,  confess  — 
From  the  august  imperial  dignity 
Of  the  first  utterance,  I  have  told  thee  true 
The  message  Caesar  bade  me  bear  to  thee." 
Drusilla,  with  rekindled  anger,  cried  : 
"  Thou  hast  cruelly  misrepresented  me, 
To  bring  upon  me  such  indignity. 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  675 

In  what  mistaken  terms  of  complaisance, 

Tell  me  —  mistaken,  or  even  treacherous  — 

Didst  thou  present  me  to  his  majesty?" 

Simon,  exasperating  purposely 

By  his  cool  air  of  imperturbable, 

Said  :  "  Madam,  it  seemed  wisest  policy - 

Best  suited  to  avoid  that  compromise 

I  knew  to  be  so  justly  hateful  to  thee 

Of  dignity  and  modesty  and  shame  — 

So  I  observed  a  careful  reticence, 

But  drew  the  emperor  on  from  point  to  point 

To  be  first  —  as  he  was — in  mentioning  thee." 

Drusilla's  fury  now  redoubled  rose ; 
With  blazing  eyes  she  rather  hissed  than  said  : 
"  He  takes  Drusilla  to  be  such  as  that ! 
Will  seek  me  under  cover  of  the  dark  ! 
Hark  thee  !  /to  be  visited  by  stealth, 
The  happy  finish  of  a  night's  carouse  ! 
Give  him  my  compliments  and  tell  him,  Nay  ! 
Bid  him  by  daylight  come,  in  proper  state, 
And  bringing  with  him  his  empire  cast  it  down 
A  proffered  bauble  at  Drusilla's  feet- 
I  will  consider  of  the  matter  then. 


676  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.         Book  XXIII. 

Up,  go,  speed,  tell  him  what  I  thus  have  said. 

I  am  in  haste  to  wash  this  stain  away, 

And  fling  his  insult  back  into  his  face. 

He  is  mighty,  he  —  but  I  am  haughty,  I  ; 

I  am  as  haughty  as  he  mighty  is  : 

I  burn  in  hell  until  be  knows  this  from  me. 

Thou  hangest — wilt  not  go?  —  art  false  to  me? 

Aye,  thou  art  false,  or  thou  hadst  out  of  hand 

Told  him  thou  knewest  Drusilla  otherwise 

Than  to  dare  take  her  such  a  word  as  that ! " 

"The  emperor  should  see  my  lady  now," 
Said  Simon  with  provoking  flattery, 
Provoking,  yet  it  mollified  her  mind, 
And  shaped  her  to  receive  what  he  would  say  — 
"Yea,  but  the  emperor  should  behold  thee  thus  — 
If  he  would  have  his  beauty  spiced  with  spite, 
And  splendid  with  a  little  awfulness. 
I  have  never  seen  thee  so  the  queen  before  ! 
But,  madam,  in  good  sooth  and  soberness, 
Behooves  that  we  consider  well  our  way. 
The  emperor  is  a  dangerous  man  —  or  god, 
Thou  knowest  they  deify  this  personage ; 
It  were  not  wise  to  tempt  him  overmuch. 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  677 

Yet  I  agree  thy  woman  instinct  well 

Advises  thee  to  dictate  terms  to  him. 

Let  these  be  high — agreed  ;  hut  not  too  high  : 

Not  quite  impossible,  observe ;  enough, 

No  more,  to  give  thee  value  in  his  eyes. 

"  I    think  of  one  end  that  thou   mightst  sub 
serve 

By  a  condition  prior  to  consent  — 
An  end  long  meditated,  and  most  dear, 
Not  to  thee  only,  but  no  less  to  him, 
Thy  well-beloved  consort  late.     Why  not 
Say  to  the  emperor :  '  Give  thou  me  a  pledge 
Beforehand  of  thy  worthy  sentiments 
Toward  thy  poor  vassal,  in  this  little  thing : 
Put  Paul  to  death  and  all  the  cursed  crew 
That  hold  with  him,  exempting  not  a  soul  - 
This  do  thou  first,  O  emperor  august, 
A  very  little  thing,  and  see  if  then 
Thy  will  find  let  in  my  will ;  so  be  I 
Am  honored  as  befits  my  quality '  — 
A  guardian  clause  elastic  of  import, 
Which  thou  mayst  after  construe  as  thou  wilt  ? 
Such  terms  I  might  obey  to  bear  to  him, 


678  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIII. 

And  they  could  only  heighten  his  regard 
Of  thee,  and  more  thy  hold  on  him  assure." 

11  There  was  Poppaea  sitting  by  his  side 
That  day  !  "  Drusilla  bitterly  exclaimed. 
"  And  knowest  thou  by  what  arts  her  place  she  won  ?  " 
Pressed  Simon  ;  "  she  was  not  afraid  to  impose 
Conditions  on  her  lover  ;  she  told  him, 
'  Thou  must  do  thus,  and  thus,'  and  he  admired 
Her  for  her  spirit,  and  succumbed  ;  do  thou 
Likewise,  and  prove  thy  right  to  reign  —  by  reigning. 
It  is  not  quite  so  proud  to  reign,  I  grant 
Thee,  as  to  spurn  ;  but  bend  thy  pride  so  much  : 
Spurning  is  fine,  but  reigning  profits  more." 
"  Thou  hast  well  advised,  my  Simon,"  with  strong 

qualms 

Subdued  of  pride,  and  loathing  sprung  from  pride, 
Drusilla  made  reply ;  and  Simon  left 
The  humbled  woman  to  her  wretchedness. 

For  she  no  longer  now  deceived  herself, 
Or  was  by  Simon  deceived,  to  keep  her  hope 
Of  splendid  triumph  by  the  emperor's  side. 
Salt  tears  and  bitter,  after  he  had  gone, 
She  stained  the  queenly  beauty  of  her  face 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  679 

Withal  and  quenched  the  brilliance  of  her  eyes. 

Her  chalice  was  of  disappointment  full  ; 

She  had  sinned,  and  she  was  still  to  sin,  in  vain  : 

She  knew  it,  but  she  did  not  change  her  choice. 

Her  only  comfort  in  her  hour  of  shame 

Was  that  at  least  a  drop  of  sweet  revenge 

And  malice  gratified  might  mingle  yet  — 

A  dash  of  soothing  —  in  the  draught  she  drank; 

She  yet  might  see  her  heart's  desire  on  Paul. 

What  if  thou  dost,  Drusilla !     Thou  wilt  seq 
The  hated  dying,  not  as  one  who  dies, 
Rather  as  one  who,  borne  aloft  and  crowned, 
Rides  celebrating  triumph  over  death  ! 
The  while  thou  seest  exalted  to  the  place 
Thou  fain  hadst  purchased  for  thyself  with  crime 
Poppaea,  empress  by  the  emperor  throned, 
Spouse  in  the  room  of  young  Octavia  slain. 
Go,  wretched  woman,  with  thy  little  son 
Beside  thee,  down  the  valley  of  the  years  — 
Years  few  and  evil,  full  of  many  woes  — 
Until  thou  shalt  with  him  be  overwhelmed 
In  that  volcano  ruin,  thy  fit  doom  ! 


680  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIII. 

With  first  obeisance  to  Poppaea  paid 
(And  blithe  report  to  her  of  progress  good 
Toward   what   she  wished  —  wanting,  he  cheerly 

thought, 

But  one  more  audience  to  attain  the  goal) 
Simon  betook  him  to  the  emperor, 
Who   greeted  him   with:    "  Well,  what,  pander? 

Speak ! 

No  parley,  no  ambages  ;  great  affairs 
Are  now  engaging  me.      Is  all  arranged? 
What  is  the  night  appointed  ?     O,  I  see 
Broad  written  over  all  thy  countenance, 
Palter,  pretext,  delay,  to  tantalize 
Forsooth  and  tease  a  lover's  eagerness. 
But  I  am  in  no  mood  to  be  played  with  ; 
Thou  balkest  me  at  thy  peril ;  speak,  man,  speak  ! 
What  message  does  the  fair  Drusilla  send?" 

Simon  came  hating  with  a  perilous  hate, 
Hate  perilous  to  himself,  the  emperor 
For  all  the  scorning  poured  before  on  him ; 
Now,  at  such  words  of  scorn  more  bitter  yet, 
His  fierce  resentment  almost  overbore 
His  fear  ;  it  threatened  to  burst  out  in  flame. 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  68 1 

But  he  was  prudent  and  afraid  enough 

To  smother  it  — as  yet ;  the  deeper  burned 

It  in  his  bosom,  forced  to  smoulder  there. 

His  hatred  and  his  fear  together  made 

His  wit  clear,  swift,  and  ready  to  command. 

He  dared  not  fence,  and  so  he  answered  fair— 

At  some  cost  to  his  mistress,  more  than  he 

Foreshadowed  in  obtaining  her  consent : 

"  My  lady  agrees,  but  does  not  fix  the  time." 

"  Agrees,  of  course  agrees,"  grossly  replied 

Nero;  "but  when,  thou  paltering  rascal,  when? — - 

That  is  the  point  thou  knowest,  and  she  knows." 

44  Lady  Drusilla  begs  the  emperor 

Will,"  wily  Simon  said,  "do  her  the  grace 

To  choose  his  own  time ;  his  choice  will  be  hers." 

"  Beyond  just  expectation  complaisant!" 

With  a  placated  grin,  the  emperor  said. 

Simon  made  thrifty  haste  not  to  let  slip 

His  favorable  chance  precarious, 

He  spoke  :  "  Aye,  when  thy  gracious  majesty 

Shalt  have  appointed  death  deserved  for  Paul 

And  for  the  pestilent  crew  his  company, 

And  shalt  have  signified  to  her  thy  leave 

To  see  the  sentence  visited  on  them  — 


682  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIII 

The  very  night  which  follows  that  bright  day 
Of  vengeance  on  the  emperor's  enemies 
Shall  brighter  than  that  day  to  her  be  made 
If  she  may  welcome  then  as  visitant 
Him  who  shall  so  have  pledged  her  his  regard/ 

"  Ah,  so  she  makes  conditions  after  all," 
Clouding  his  brow,  but  lightly,  Nero  said. 
"A  woman  is  a  woman,"  Simon  replied, 
"And  queen  Drusilla  is  high-spirited 
Doubtless  beyond  the  common  ;  humor  her, 
I  pray  thee,  in  this  trifle  ;  thou  wilt  note 
How  that,  in  seeming  so  to  save  her  pride 
Somewhat,  her  dignity,  her  modesty, 
She  really  seeks  to  serve  a  public  end 
Of  justice  and  of  good  imperial  fame." 
"  Thou  makest  her  worthy  of  a  throne  indeed," 
The  emperor  with  indulgent  sarcasm  said, 
"  With  her  wise  forecast  and  expansive  views." 
"  Faith  toward  the  person  of  the  emperor  — 
Faith,  and  perhaps  some  nearer  sentiment  — 
Inspires  her  to  be  large  in  statesmanship," 
Said  Simon  —  eased  a  moment  in  his  mind 
To  be  diplomatist  in  honeyed  lies. 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  683 

"Tell  her  I  will  consult  my  oracle," 
Nero  maliciously  replied;  "and  say 
My  oracle  is  a  lady,  hence  will  know 
Better  than  I  should  dare  pretend  I  can 
What  would  be  fit  in  such  peculiar  case. 
As  fountain  prime  of  justice  to  my  realm, 
I  own  I  have  some  scruples  in  this  thing  - 
Whether  it  were  ideal  right  and  good 
To  barter  sentences  of  life  and  death 
Simply  that  I  may  please  a  lady  fair, 
And  be  a  favored  suitor  at  her  court. 

"  But  I  perhaps  will  toss  a  die  and  see 
What  chance  will  say  ;  chance  is  a  prudent  god, 
And,  in  his  seeming-random  way,  is  right 
As  oft  as  wisdom  with  his  reasons  weighed  : 
Besides  I  can  keep  on  throwing,  till  the  turn 
Pleases  my  fancy  of  the  moment.     Go, 
Solemn  ambassador  from  court  to  court, 
Report  what  I  have  said,  but  give  a  wink 
At  end  to  mean  thou  guessest  all  is  well." 

Simon,  retiring,  soon  Poppsea  sought, 
And,  with  dark  hint  and  indirection,  told 
How  he  had  dropped  into  the  emperor's  ear 


684  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL-         Book  XXIII. 

A  seed  of  such  suggestion  as,  he  thought, 

Would  quickly  spring  and  blossom  and  bear  fruit 

To  the  advantage  of  her  dearest  wish  : 

It  would  but  need  attaint  Octavia's  faith 

As  consort  of  the  emperor,  and  so, 

By  open  operation  of  the  law, 

Set  her  aside  and  leave  him  lorn  of  wife. 

The  acclamation  of  the  people  then 

Would  join  the  emperor's  own  desire  to  fill 

Octavia's  vacant  room  with  —  whom  but  one  ? 

But  would  Poppsea  help  him  in  one  thing? 

He  greatly  wished  to  give  the  emperor  proof 

Of  what  he  could  accomplish  in  his  art 

Of  conjuring  with  weird  supernatural  powers; 

He  thought  his  weight  as  intermediary 

In  her  behalf  would  be  increased  thereby. 

Poppsea,  promising  to  stir  up  the  mind 

Of  Nero  to  a  proper  appetite 

For  Simon's  thaumaturgy,  let  him  go. 

While  such  fruits  in  the  dark  were  growing  ripe, 
Things  in  the  open  looked  the  self-same  way. 
Stephen,  who  daily  scouted  in  the  world 
Without  of  Rome,  its  rumor,  its  event, 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SI. 


Brought  thence  one*  day  to  Paul  ill-boding  word  : 
"  Burrus  is  dead,  that  just  man  ;  how  he  died, 
Whether  of  sickness,  poison,  suicide, 
No  man  can  say  —  or  rather  all  men  say, 
Some,  one  thing,  some,  another ;  doubtful  all. 
But  two  men  take  his  place  in  prefecture, 
One,  Tigellinus  —  baser  none  than  he  : 
I  doubt  thou  wilt  come  to  feel  his  heavy  hand. 
Then  that  vile  woman  Poppaea,  so  they  say, 
Has  become  Jewish  proselyte,  forsooth. 
Wherefore?     No  doubt,  colluding  with  Drusilla- 
The  wicked  Simon  with  his  sorcery, 
And  with  his  office  low  of  go-between, 
Egging  them  on  —  to  be  Jews  good  enough, 
The  three  together,  to  act  in  Shimei's  place 
As  thine  accusers  to  the  emperor  ? 
O,  my  heart  sinks  in  doubt  and  fear  for  thee  !  " 
"It  need  not,  Stephen  ;  my  heart  is  buoyant,"  Paul 
Said  to  his  nephew  in  calm  and  firm  reply. 
"  Nothing  can  fall  out  from  the  order  fair 
Of  God's  will  for  His  chosen  and  well-beloved ; 
All  things  together  work  for  good  to  them." 
"  All  things  ?  "  said  Stephen  ;   "  Lord,  increase  my 
faith  !  " 


686  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIII. 

For  he  hung  staggered  at  the  paradox. 

"O,  yea,  all  things,  exception  none,"  said  Paul. 

But  hardly  had  been  uttered  those  strong  words, 
When,  in  the  door,  rudely  burst  open,  stood 
Two  armed  minions  of  the  prefecture. 
"  Wanted,  for  torture  on  the  witness-rack" — 
One  of  these  spoke  in  strident  tones  and  hard — - 
"  Onesimus,  a  Phrygian  runaway, 
Slave  of  the  late  lord  Felix,  harbored  here. 
Point  out  the  rogue  ;  we  are  under  strait  command, 
And  Tigellinus  will  brook  no  delay. 
Ah,  there  he  is  —  he  has  betrayed  himself  — 
White  as  a  corpse  ;  were  he  as  innocent ! 
Come,  rascal,  and  cheer  thee  up,  thou  art  to  have 
Thy  Syrus  for  a  fellow  on  the  rack." 
With  rally  such,  in  coarsest  irony, 
They  hurried  off  Onesimus  to  doom- 
Scarce  time  to  Paul  for  breathing  in  his  ear 
To  bid  him  in  the  strength  of  Christ  be  strong. 

"  O,  uncle,  'all  things'  to  Onesimus, 
Him  also,  in  a  fearful  stead  like  this?" 
Said  Stephen,  in  vicarious  agony. 
"  Would  I  could  take  his  stead  for  him  ! "  said  Paul. 


Book  XXIII.  NERO  AND  SIMON.  687 

"  I  cannot,  but  Christ  can,  and  will  —  nay,  did, 
Then  when  He  suffered  all  on  Calvary. 
Pray  for  Onesimus  that  he  his  trust 
Withdraw  not  from  the  Lord  who  thus  proves 

him  — 

And  pray  for  Syrus  that  his  faith  fail  not. 
Now,  O  Lord  Jesus,  in  Gethsemane 
And  on  the  bitter  cross  of  Calvary 
Thyself  so  anguished  once  in  that  frail  flesh 
Thou  worest  for  our  sake  —  that  Thou  mightst 

suffer !  — 
Help,  help,  thy  servants  in  their  sudden  hour." 

The  soldier  that  was  manacled  to  Paul 
Wondered,  but  reverenced,  when  these  things  he 
heard. 


BOOK     XXIV 
THE  END. 


The  two  slaves,  Onesimus  and  Syrus,  bear  their  torture 
with  constancy,  refusing  to  testify  otherwise  than  in  grateful 
praise  of  Paul.  The  emperor,  at  Seneca's  prompting,  has 
secretly  overheard  their  testimony,  and,  obeying  a  caprice  of 
justice  and  of  pity,  he  follows  a  further  hint  from  Seneca  to 
let  Paul  go  free  under  bond  to  appear  again  when  formal 
accusation  shall  be  laid  against  him  from  Jerusalem.  Paul 
thus  released  sends  home  to  Holy  Land  the  friends  that  had 
thence  accompanied  him  to  Rome,  and  accomplishes  his  last 
missionary  tours,  with  Luke  only  for  companion. 

Meantime  Drusilla,  in  a  desperate  hope  revived  by  the 
rumored  fall  from  imperial  favor  of  Poppaea,  sends  Simon 
once  more  to  secure  for  his  mistress  the  long-postponed  meet 
ing  with  Nero.  Simon  plays  Drusilla  false  and  pretends  to 
the  emperor  that  she  had  indulgently  sent  him,  Simon,  to 
sue  on  his  own  belalf  for  the  privilege  of  practising  his  art  in 
the  palace.  Nero  agrees  that  he  may  do  this  on  condition 
that  he  shall  first  have  secured  from  his  mistress  fresh  con 
sent  to  receive  an  imperial  visit  in  her  house.  Simon,  stung 
by  the  emperor's  scorn  of  him,  had  wrought  himself  up  to 
the  temerity  of  attempting  to  play  on  Nero's  guilty  con 
science  by  an  exhibition  that  should  bring  up  before  the 
tyrant  a  dreadful  recollection  of  one  of  his  own  most  heinous 
crimes.  The  result  proves  suddenly  fatal  to  Simon. 

Paul,  brought  back  in  due  time  for  trial,  becomes  the 
victim  not  only  of  enmity  openly  working  under  legal  forms 
against  him,  but  of  secret  intrigue  for  unholy  personal  pur 
poses  on  the  emperor's  part.  Condemned  to  die,  after  having 
been  permitted  first  to  speak  in  his  own  defence,  the  apostle 
is  led  to  a  suburb  of  Rome,  and  there  beheaded.  Luke,  en 
joined  thereto  by  Paul,  gives  to  his  kindred  and  friends  in 
Palestine  an  account  of  the  end,  of  which  he  was  eye-witness. 


THE  END. 

Onesimus  and  Syrus  had  been  seized 
To  make  them  swear  a  dreadful  perjury ; 
It  was  persuasion  from  Drusilla  wrought 
With  Tigellinus  to  commit  this  deed 
Of  outrage  against  ruth  and  righteousness  : 
Those  bondmen  should  be  brought,  by  utmost  pangs 
Wreaked  on  them  in  the  anguish  of  the  rack, 
To  charge  Paul  with  the  poisoning  of  her  spouse. 

Drusilla  first  had  vainly  sought  to  bribe 
Poor  Syrus  to  that  lie  and  perfidy. 
Smiles,  blandishments,  entreaties,  promises, 
Failing  —  she  next,  with  scourgings  from  her  tongue, 
Threats,  thrusts  from  female  weapons  in  her  hands, 
Had  striven  to  warp  him  to  her  wish  —  in  vain. 
At  last  she,  giving  him  up  for  torture,  yet 
Bade  him  remember  he  need  only  swear, 
Therein  supported  by  Onesimus, 
That  from  Paul's  hand  he  had  a  dust  received  — 
Impalpable,  so  fine  —  of  unknown  power 
To  work  unknown  effect  upon  a  man, 


692  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIV. 

And  had  by  Paul  instructed  been  to  sift 

This  secretly  into  some  draught  his  lord 

Would  drink,  and  watch  how  it  would  gladden  him  — 

That  he  had  only  to  protest  that  lie, 

Confessing  then  that,  in  all  innocence 

Of  childish  curiosity  to  see, 

He  did  it  when  his  mistress  sent  by  him 

A  sleeping-draught  to  Felix  in  his  bath — • 

Only  just  this,  and  straight  for  both  of  them, 

Onesimus  with  Syrus,  the  sharp  pains 

And  rending  of  the  question  should  be  stayed. 

Syrus  said  sadly  to  Onesimus  : 
"  O,  would  that  Paul  were  here  to  give  us  heart ! " 
"Jesus  is  here,  and  He  will  give  us  heart," 
Onesimus  replied  ;  "  let  us  trust  Him." 
"  I  fear  I  shall  be  broken  to  their  will," 
Said  Syrus,  "  and  swear  whatever  they  desire ; 
I  am  so  in  terror  of  the  frightful  pain  !  " 
This  was  while  they  were  binding  the  poor  slaves 
Upon  the  rack.     His  comrade  spoke  in  cheer  : 
"  '  Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,'  Jesus  said  ; 
He  will  not  let  us  suffer  overmuch, 
I  shall  not  wonder  if  He  take  away 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  693 

The  pain,  almost  —  or  altogether  even. 
For  He  abideth  faithful  —  so  Paul  says, 
And  Paul  has  proved  it  over  and  over  again. 
At  any  rate,  the  promise  Jesus  made 
To  Paul  once,  when  his  need  was  very  sore, 
Will  be  as  good  to  us  in  this  our  stead  ; 
His  grace  will  be  sufficient  for  us  still. 
The  dread  is  heavier  than  the  pain  will  be." 

And  it  was  so  ;  for  after  the  first  wrench, 
Which  well-nigh  solved  the  jointings  of  their  limbs, 
The  spirit  rose  the  sovereign  of  the  flesh 
And  bore  those  helpless  victims  of  the  rack 
Triumphant  as  in  painless  ecstasy. 
Their  mortal  frames  became  as  instruments 
Of  music  underneath  the  player's  hand  ; 
For  every  quivering  nerve  within  them  strung 
Responded  to  the  running  torture's  touch 
In  bursts  of  exclamation  like  the  notes 
Of  a  song  sung  to  some  pathetic  tune 
Wherein  the  pathos  still  keeps  triumphing  : 
"  Lord  Jesus,  this  for  Thee  !  "     "  And  this  ! "     "  O, 

joy- 
That  we  are  counted  worthy  thus  to  suffer  !  " 


694 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV 


"  It  is  not  suffering,  since  for  Thee  we  suffer!  " 
Meanwhile  to  every  challenge  touching  Paul, 
Though  thrills  of  anguish  broke  their  speech  to 

cries, 

They  said,  and  would  forever  only  say : 
"  He  taught  us  nothing  but  to  reverence 
Our  masters  with  all  good  fidelity 
Of  service  rendered  them  out  of  true  hearts 
As  to  the  Lord  in  heaven  and  not  to  men." 

By  secret  orders  from  the  emperor 
The  torture-room  was  cunningly  contrived 
To  be  a  sort  of  whispering  gallery, 
An  ear  of  Dionysius,  to  resound 
Whatever  might  be  uttered  from  the  rack 
Wrung  out  of  victims  put  to  question  there  — 
Words,  cries,  sighs,  groans,  or  moans  of  agony  — • 
And  carry  them  to  distance  where  above, 
If  one  should  listen,  they  might  all  be  heard. 
Here  Nero  laid  a  listening  ear  that  day- 
Seneca's  prompting,  who  was  present  too  — 
And  heard  Onesimus  and  Syrus  bear 
Their  steadfast  witness  on  behalf  of  Paul, 
With  adjuration  mingled  of  a  Name. 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  695 

The  not  yet  utterly  extinguished  spark 

Of  human  in  that  indurated  breast 

(Perhaps  therewith  effect  of  fear  infused- 

Divinely  —  at  such  adjuration  heard) 

Responded  in  a  transitory  glow 

Of  something  gentle  that  resembled  ruth 

Toward  those  poor  sufferers  faithful  against  pain  ; 

Of  something  that  resembled  justice  too 

Toward  Paul  so  stoutly  witnessed  for  by  them. 

He  forthwith  bade  release  the  witnesses; 

And  hearkened  to  a  counsel  touching  Paul. 

For  Seneca  adventured  this  to  him  — 

A  farewell  flicker  of  his  influence, 

Ere  Tigellinus  overbore  him  quite  — : 

"  Shouldst  thou  think  well  it  might  indeed  be  well, 

To  loose  this  Jewish  prisoner  from  his  thrall  — 

He  giving  surety  under  ample  bond 

To  answer  with  his  person  at  the  bar 

Of  Caesar  upon  summons,  to  be  tried 

Whenever  shall  appear  accusers  sent 

Accredited  from  Jerusalem  to  Rome." 

So  out  of  darkness  there  sprang  up  a  light 
To  Paul,  and  for  that  present  he  went  free. 


696  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 

Soon  at  a  meeting  of  thanksgiving  held 
To  celebrate  with  praises  to  the  Lord 
His  unexpected  riddance  out  of  thrall 
Paul  to  his  brethren  and  his  kindred  said : 
"  My  life  reprieved  from  threatened  death  in  shame, 
I  dedicate  anew  to  Christ  the  Lord. 
I  go  hence,  parting  from  you  all  with  tears 
Of  joyful  love,  and  thanks  for  love  again 
Mine  in  full  measure  from  so  many  hearts 
That  have  not  here  my  bonds  in  Christ  despised  — 
I  go  hence,  in  the  Spirit  bound,  to  bear 
Far  as  I  may  abroad  in  all  the  world 
The  glorious  gospel  of  the  blessed  God. 
Pray  for  me  that  I  may  be  sped  in  peace, 
And  that  before  me  doors  of  utterance  may 
Swing  open  wide  wherever  I  am  led. 
The  time  is  short  for  all  of  us ;  for  me 
Shorter,  it  may  be,  than  our  present  joy 
Buoys  us  to  hope.     Perhaps  the  Lord  will  come 
And  find  me  waking  still  —  and  not  asleep  — 
To  welcome  Him  descending  in  the  air. 
Amen  !     So  may  it  be  !     Lord  Jesus,  come  ! 

44  And  yet,  beloved,  though  these  words  I  speak, 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  697 

A  more  prevailing  prescience  in  my  heart 
Forewarns  me  I  shall  witness  with  my  blood 
For  Him  who  suffered  unto  blood  for  me. 
If  so  it  be,  amen  !     Lord  Jesus,  yea, 
Thy  will  for  me  is  my  will  for  myself ; 
I  spring  to  it  with  joy,  or  far  or  near- 
Unknown  to  me  —  enough  that  it  is  Thine  ! 

"  So,  farewell,  ye.     Watch  and  remember,  all, 
That  by  the  space  of  two  full  years  in  chains 
I  have  not  ceased  to  warn  you  night  and  day, 
Each  one,  with  tears.     And  now,  behold,  I  know 
That  some  of  you  to  whom  I  have  fulfilled 
This  ministry  shall  see  my  face  no  more. 
O,  brethren,  I  commend  you  unto  God  ! 
Be  perfect,  be  of  brave  and  hopeful  cheer, 
Be  of  one  mind,  abide  in  peace,  and  He, 
The  God  of  love  and  peace,  shall  with  you  be. 
O,  how  my  heart  is  large  toward  you  !     The  love 
Of  God,  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
And  the  communion  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
Be  with  you  and  abound  —  ever!     Amen  ! " 
Therewith    Paul  kneeled  and  prayed  a  breaking 
prayer ; 


698  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 

And  they  all  wept,  and  he  wept  with  them  all, 
They  falling  on  his  neck  and  kissing  him 
In  love  and  sorrow.     Each  one  with  himself 
'  Among  them,  I  ? '  asked,  and  so  sorrowed  most 
Of  all  for  that  word  which  he  spoke,  "  I  know 
That  some  of  you  shall  see  my  face  no  more." 

Paul  sent  his  kindred  and  his  lovers  —  those 
Who  for  his  sake  had  sailed  with  him  to  Rome  — 
Back  to  find  home  again  in  Holy  Land, 
While  he,  with  Luke  for  his  companion  sole, 
Should  run  his  rounds  of  mission  through  the  world, 
11  But  what  ye  can,"  he  said,  "  before  ye  go, 
Comfort  Onesimus  and  Syrus,  sick 
With  wounding   for  Christ's  sake   and   mine  ;    I 

have 

Already  bathed  Onesimus  with  tears 
Of  love,  and  bidden  him  in  Christ  be  strong : 
Ye  will  not  leave  him  till  his  health  be  whole 
At  least  enough  to  take  the  journey  back 
To  our  Philemon,  bearing  thanks  from  me. 

"  Those  here  in  Rome  that  love  me  I  shall  trust 
To  speed  both  you  and  him  with  needful  aid  — 
Even  as  I  trust  them  not  to  let  me  lack. 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  699 

Onesimus  no  doubt  will  find  a  way 
That  ye  could  not,  nor  I,  to  carry  help 
To  Syrus  in  his  far  more  wretched  case- 
Beset  with  household  craft  and  cruelty. 
Pray  ye  for  him  ;  and  lade  Onesimus 
In  seeking  Syrus  deep  with  love  from  me. 
Christ  will  not  fail  him,  if  he  fail  not  Christ ; 
'  It  is  but  for  a  moment,  all  the  pain,' 
Charge  it  upon  Onesimus  to  say, 
1  But  for  eternal  ages  is  the  joy  ! ' 

"  Now  unto  such  as  can  receive  it  I, 
Under  this  present  imminence  of  woe 
Forerunning  the  return  of  Christ  the  Lord, 
Give  counsel  not  to  marry  but  abide 
In  undistracted  waiting  for  the  Day. 
Yet  for  our  Stephen  and  Eunice  here, 
Already  long  betrothed  and  lovers  true, 
My  will  is  as  their  will  is;  let  them  wed. 
Stephen  as  husband  to  Eunice  can 
In  journeying  better  fend  both  her  and  Ruth 
Her  mother  ;  he  as  well  can  fend  his  own, 
Rachel,  the  only  —  sister  of  my  heart  !" 
Paul's  voice  a  little  failed  him,  ending  thus ; 


;oo 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 


And  all  took  knowledge  how  his  kindred  love 
Broke  over  him,  a  wave  of  tenderness  ! 

So  Stephen  and  Eunice  wedded  were, 
Paul  each  in  turn  adjuring  solemnly : 
"Thou,  O  Eunice,  wilt  as  wife  be  true, 
That  know  I  well,  to  whom  thou  thus  hast  wed. 
Submit  thyself  to  him  in  loyal  love, 
And  as  in  pledged  obedience  to  the  /Lord  — 
Less  to  his  will  so  yielding  than  to  Christ's*. 
For  God  ordains  it  that  the  husband  be        »" 
Head  to  the  wife,  as  to  the  church  is  Chrlot. 
But  thou,  O  Stephen,  judge  what  sanctiorf  so    ^ 
Is  on  the  husband  laid,  to  be  how  pure. 
Above  self-will  and  selfishness  how  high, 
How  full  of  ministration  and  of  help, 
How  ready  ever  to  self-sacrifice 
For  the  wife's  sake,  how  gentle  and  how  kind ! 
Thou,  therefore,  Stephen,  love  thy  wife,  even  so 
As  the  Lord  Jesus  loved  the  church,  His  bride, 
And  for  her  gave  Himself.     Be  happy,  ye, 
Beloved,  in  a  love  so  sanctified." 
Paul  blessed  them,  and  they  felt  that  they  were 
tilessed. 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END. 

When  soon  from  Rome  they  took  their  homeward 

way- 

Ruth,  Rachel,  and  the  newly-wedded  pair- 
They  wept  that  they  had  looked  their  last  on   Paul ; 
Wept  with  rejoicing  that,  a  little  while, 
.    And  the  Lord  coming  would  make  all  things  glad. 

Now'Sergius  Paulus  chose  it  for  his  part 
To  fill  Paul's  ptarse,  speeding  him  on  his  way ; 
But  Krishna  was  of  mind  himself  to  go 
,\Vith  those  who  would  return  to  Holy  Land. 
He'longLJ  with  his  own  eyes  to  see  the  scenes 
Amid  which  Jesus  lived  His  life  on  earth 
And  to  glean  up  from  the  tradition  found 
Haply  there  current  in  the  mouths  of  men 
Concerning  Him,  both  what  He  taught  and  what 
He  was :  the  Indian's  thought  was  he  would  then, 
Full-laden  with  such  treasures  of  the  West, 
To  his  own  native  East  return  and  there 
Dispense  them  to  enrich  his  countrymen. 

Paul  bade  him  prosper  in  his  wish,  and  go. 

,  / 
Acquitted  thus  of  all  his  natural  cares, 

And  joyful  in  the  sense  of  his  reprieve, 

And  springing  toward  the  work  that  he  would  do, 


702  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 

And  for  that  work  renewed  in  strength  by  hope 
And  faith  and  love  and  zeal  unquenchable 
And  passion  for  the  saving  of  the  souls 
Of  men,  his  fellows,  perishing  in  sin  — 
Much  more,  by  the  almighty  hand  of  God 
Upon  him  stayed  in  an  immortal  youth  - 
That  spent  old  man,  refusing  to  be  spent 
Though  spending  daily  like  the  river  of  God, 
Set  forward,  Luke  alone  companion  now, 
To  send  with  torch  in  hand  a  running  fire 

Of  gospel  conflagration  round  the  world. 

"v"  i 

Go,  Paul,  forgetful  of  thyself,  make  speed  ! 
Thou  shalt  not  be  forgotten  of  thy  God  ! 
Go,  with  that  treasure  for  thy  fellows  fraught ! 
Go,  with  the  future  of  the  world  in  trust ! 
Nowhere  in  utmost  islands  of  the  sea, 
Never  till  time  shall  be  no  more,  shall  men 
Not  owe  thee  debt  for  blessings  manifold  — 
Crowning  the  life  that  now  is,  frail  and  fleet, 
Crowning  the  nobler  life  that  is  to  be  — 
Blessings  theirs  but  because  thou  wouldst  not  shrink 
From  whatsoever  hardship,  peril,  harm, 
Loss,  toil,  self-sacrifice  to  martyrdom. 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  703 

So  thou  mightst  scatter  far  and  wide  for  us 
The  deathless  seeds  of  that  which  we  enjoy 
In  harvest  of  all  good,  civility 
Of  morals  and  of  manners,  science,  art, 
Fair  order,  freedom,  progress,  light  and  life, 
And,  overvaulting  all,  the  hope  of  heaven! 

While  Paul  his  circuits  was  accomplishing, 
Paul's  enemies  (and  ours)  were  not  remiss, 
Whether  in  Rome  or  in  Jerusalem. 
Drusilla,  disappointed  of  her  hopes 
With  Nero  to  ensnare  his  heart  and  be 
Assumed  to  sit  beside  him  on  his  throne, 
Even  cheated  for  the  moment  of  the  glut 
She  thought  she  had  purchased  at  such  cost  to  pride 
Of  extreme  vengeance  visited  on  Paul, 
Was  sullenly  but  more  than  ever  bent 
Not  to  fail  yet  of  at  least  that  desire. 
She  saw  Octavia,  sent  to  exile,  way 
Make  for  Poppaea's  spousals ;  heard  the  shout 
Of  shallow  hollow  popular  acclaim 
That  hailed  her  hated  rival  conqueror, 
Bearing  her  as  on  billows  of  applause 
To  the  high  seat  herself  had  hoped  for  once ! 


704  THE  %PIC  OP  PA  UL-         Book  XXIV 

Envy  and  hatred  ulcerous  ate  her  heart  — 

But  not  despair ;  despair  was  not  for  her : 

Malignity  was  fuel  still  to  hope. 

She  despatched  Simon  to  Jerusalem 

To  blow  the  embers  smouldering  there  to  flame 

Of  deadly  accusation  against  Paul : 

Simon  was  Shimei  risen  from  the  dead, 

Shimei  in  all  his  pristine  force  unspent. 

The  elders  of  the  Jews  commissioned  him, 

With  others  to  whom  he  was  heart  and  head, 

To  press  at  Rome  for  Paul  the  doom  of  death. 

Meantime  the  mouth  of  common  fame  began 
To  whisper  that  Poppaea,  though  a  wife 
To  Nero  now  —  perhaps  because  a  wife 
And  mother  of  a  daughter,  Claudia,  born 
To  him  —  no  longer  charmed  him  as  of  old. 
Unholy  hope  flared  up  a  flicker  of  flame 
Delusive  in  Drusilla's  breast  once  more. 
Octavia,  when  her  husband  tired  of  her, 
Went  into  exile  and  then  went  to  death 
To  give  Poppaea  room  ;  Poppaea's  turn 
Perhaps  was  nearing  to  make  room  for  her, 
Drusilla ! 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END. 


705 


*  Up,  O  heart ! '  she  inly  cried. 
The  emperor  had  indeed  with  fickle  whim, 
Dazed  by  some  intercepting  lure  more  nigh, 
Forgotten  quite  his  thought  of  tryst  with  her — 
As  her  conditions  too  he  had  not  met. 
But  her  conditions  now  were  well  in  train, 
She  trusted,  to  fulfill  themselves  on  Paul ; 
And  if  before,  some  trace  of  conscience  left 
In  Nero  interfered  to  make  him  pause, 
Such  scruple  would  no  longer  be  a  let 
To  his  desire,  should  his  desire  revive, 
Of  meeting  her  upon  the  terms  she  fixed 
To  satisfy  at  once  her  hate,  her  pride. 
Simon  then,  from  Jerusalem  returned 
Blithe  with  his  prosperous  mission  and  with  hope, 
Should  go  once  more  to  Nero  for  her  cause. 

And  Simon  went,  but  went  not  for  her  cause. 
He  had  a  purpose  of  his  own  to  serve  — 
Purpose  malignant,  fatuous  —  which,  fulfilled, 
Would  swift  recoil  in  ruin  on  himself. 

No  worship  to  Poppaea's  setting  sun 
Paid  by  him  now  to  win  his  way  at  court, 
He  boldly  in  Drusilla's  name  besought 


706  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.         Book  XXIV. 

Access  to  the  imperial  ear :  that  name 

Procured  him  instant  audience.     Discomposed 

A  little  by  the  sudden  way  he  made 

Simon  stood  faltering,  and  before  his  wit 

Was  ready  with  apt  words  the  emperor  spoke  : 

"  What  will  thy  mistress  ?    She  perhaps  has  thought 

The  emperor  was  a  trifle  slow  to  claim 

His  privilege  at  her  court?     Bid  her  take  heart ; 

Things  now  begin  to  shape  themselves  aright/' 

By  this  time  Simon  had  recovered  himself ; 

He  said  :     "  My  mistress  is  indulgent,  Sire. 

Knowing  my  fondness  for  my  art,  and  wish 

That  I  might  entertain  the  emperor, 

She  begs  thou  wilt  appoint  a  time  for  me  —  " 

"  O,  aye,"  the  emperor  said;  "  return  to  her, 

And  if  thou  canst  bring  promptly  back  to  me 

Assurance  of  her  grace  that  she  forgives 

My  tardiness  in  the  past,  and  will  receive 

Me  yet  upon  the  terms  she  fixed  before  — 

Somewhat  abated,  aye,  but  in  the  main 

Whole ;  for  although  the  rabble  rest  she  named 

Are  scattered  and  not  worth  regathering,  Paul 

Is  under  hand  again,  duly  accused, 

And  freely  may  be  dealt  with  to  our  wish  — 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  707 

Bring,  I  say,  word  to  me  that  she  consents, 
And  thou  shalt  exercise  for  me  thine  art 
At  pleasure  here  within  my  palace  halls. 
Go,  and  good  speed,  ambassador  of  love  ! ' 

The  sarcasm  and  the  irony  took  effect 
To  quicken  in  the  sorcerer  his  resolve  : 
For  Simon  his  own  doom  was  teeming  now. 
He  was  infatuate  with  the  vain  conceit 
That  he  the  secret  in  his  art  possessed 
Of  a  mock-supernatural  power  to  play 
Upon  the  conscience  of  the  emperor 
And  fill  his  conscious  breast  with  guilty  fears  : 
So  once  he  saw  Paul  play  on  Felix's, 
Making  him  shudder  on  his  judgment-throne  ; 
Aye,  and  so  he  himself  in  sequel  played 
On  the  same  kingly  culprit  with  his  spells. 
Beyond  all,  Simon  was  beside  himself 
With  suffocated  hatred  seeking  breath 
In  freak  of  demonstration  on  the  man 
Who  in  the  wantonness  of  despotic  pride 
Had  so  despised  and  mocked  and  flouted  him. 
Mad  thus  —  judicially,  and  doubly  —  he, 
Having  brought  back  the  word  the  emperor  wished, 


708  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 

And  had  the  promised  day  appointed  him, 
Dared  an  audacious  and  a  fatal  thing. 

A  series  of  phantasmagories  shown 
By  him,  he  closed  with  a  presentment,  clear 
In  outline  cast  upon  the  palace  wall 
In  shapes  of  shadow  moving  like  grim  life, 
Of  the  dread  scene  of  Agrippina's  death  : 
There  hung  the  vessel  on  a  glassy  sea ; 
The  coping  timbers  causelessly  fell  down, 
But  missed  the  empress-mother  figured  there  ; 
There  followed  then  the  ghastly  after-act 
Of  mother-murder  done  in  pantomime  — 
More  ghastly,  that  it  passed  in  silence  all. 

Simon  mistook  —  it  was  his  last  mistake! 
He  had  overweened  both  of  the  power  his  own, 
And  of  the  emperor's  openness  to  fear. 
Nero  sat  gazing  on  the  spectacle 
With  heed  moveless,  and  mute,  and  ominous, 
Till  the  device  was  acted  to  the  end. 
Then  still  no  sign  he  gave  —  save  summons  sent 
Bidding  two  household  soldiers  straight  come  in. 
To  these  he  coldly,  curtly,  only  said  : 
"  Crucify  me  this  Jew  ;  do  it  at  once  ! 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  709 

Be  gentle  with  him ;  make  him  last  for  days, 
And  every  day  bring  me  report  of  him." 

Simon  bethought  him  as  he  shuddering  went 
Hustled  and  hurried  to  that  sudden  doom, 
Of  his  gold  hoarded  long  for  utmost  need  : 
He  offered  it  in  ransom  for  his  life. 
The  soldiers  took  it,  share  and  share  alike 
Between  them,  but  it  did  not  buy  his  life  ! 
Simon  died  miserably  upon  the  cross. 

'  I  have  abolished  him!'  the  emperor  thought  - 
'The  adamantine  front  of  impudence! 
Whimsical  way  of  paying  a  lady  court, 
To  crucify  her  conjurer  out  of  hand  ! 
I  hope  she  did  not  greatly  care  for  him  ! 
Happily  if  she  did  I  can  repair 
The  loss  to  her  by  putting  Paul  to  death. 
Strange,  they  should  hate  that  blameless  man  so 

much  ! 
But  reasons  of  state  are  strong  —  and  reasons  of 

love  ; 

I  must  propitiate  with  a  sacrifice. 
Jove  is  compelled  by  fate  mightier  than  he  ! ' 


THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 

The  tetrarch  Herod,  to  content  the  whim 
And  hatred  of  his  wife  Herodias, 
Once  at  petition  of  her  daughter  fair  — 
Whose  dancing  measures  beat  at  festival 
Before  him  had,  forsooth,  the  monarch  pleased !  — 
Sent  to  behead  John  Baptist  in  his  prison  : 
So  Nero  now  in  mind  delivered  Paul 
To  death  —  an  unconsidered  pledge  and  pawn 
Of  complaisance  to  a  base  woman  paid. 

As  were  a  star  by  some  avulsive  force 
Malignant  sheer  from  out  her  pathway  torn 
Where  she  went  singing  her  celestial  way 
Happy  but  to  fulfill  His  high  decree 
Who  orbed  her  and  who  sped  her  on  her  course 
(Thenceforth  to  be  abolished  from  a  heaven 
Lighted  no  longer  with  her  lucent  beams !)  ; 
So  Paul  was  in  his  heavenly  circuits  stayed 
And  wrenched  thence  by  the  hand  of  violent  power. 
Rome  had  already  round  him  flung  the  loop 
Of  her  long  lasso  irresistible, 
And  drawn  him  home  to  Caesar  to  be  judged. 

No  little  damped  because  their  head  was  gone, 
But  more  because  he  so  had  disappeared, 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  7I 

The  Jews  commissioned  from  Jerusalem 

Pressed  fierce  their  suit  against  their  fellow-Jew. 

Nero's  assessors  sat  without  their  chief ; 

For  Nero  was  grown  indolent  and  lax, 

And  he  deputed  his  judicial  powers. 

Yet  oft  deigned  he  to  give  his  deputies 

Hint  of  what  judgment  he  desired  from  them; 

And  they  now  knew  the  doom  required  for  Paul. 

Paul  was  left  lonely  of  all  men  save  Luke  ; 
But  Luke  the  faithful  chose  with  him  his  part. 
Paul  longed  for  Timothy,  and  wrote  to  him 
Bidding  him  haste  and  bring  John  Mark  to  Rome. 
But  the  end  hasted  more  than  these  could  haste, 
And  Timothy  was  never  in  the  flesh 
To  greet  again  that  father  of  his  soul 
Who,  for  the  son's  sake  more  than  for  his  own, 
Yearned  toward  the  son  to  fix  in  him  his  faith 
Seen  nigh  to  falter  in  the  face  of  things 
Such  as  now  fronted   Paul.     John    Mark  though 

once 

In  haste  of  spirit  sundered  from  Paul's  part, 
Had  long  before  been  won  again  — to  bide 
Thenceforward  ever  fast  in  loyalty  ; 


7-12  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIV. 

i 

But  as  not  Timothy,  so  neither  he 

Would  comfort  Paul  in  this  his  last  assay. 

So  much  thevmore  Paul's  lonely  fortitude 

In  witness  amid  storms  of  obloquy 

And  under  the  impending  threat  of  doom, 

Then  against  doom  itself  upon  him  fallen, 

Should  at  need  brace  them  both  to  martyrdom. 

Most  exquisitely  human-hearted,  Paul 
Could  not  but  feel  full  sore  his  loneliness  — 
Loneliness  more  for  sense  of  being  forsaken. 
"  Demas,"  to  Timothy  he  sighed,  "  has  loved 
This  present  world,  and  has  forsaken  me. 
All  men  forsook  me  the  first  time  I  stood 
To  make  my  answer  at  the  judgment-bar ; 
I  pray  it  be  not  laid  to  their  account ! " 
Nobly  repined  !  —  yet  for  a  moment  only  ; 
Then  cheerly  added,  this,  and  thankfully: 
"  Of  men  not  one  stood  with  me  ;  but  the  Lord, 
He  with  me  stood,  and  cheered  and  strengthened 

me, 

* 

That  all  the  gentiles  might  the  gospel  hear ; 
And  for  that  time  from  out  the  lion's  mouth 
I  was  delivered.  Yea,  and  betide  what  may,  * 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  ,  713 

Still  the  Lord  Jesus  will  deliver  me 

From  every  machination  of  ill  men, 

And  to  His  heavenly  kingdom  bring  me  safe. 

To  whom  be  glory  evermore  !     Amen  ! " 

Enjoined  thereto  by  Paul,  Luke  bore  from  Rome 
To  Rachel  and  the  rest  in  Holy  Land  — 
That  dear  companionship  of  kindred  hearts  — 
The  tidings  how  all  ended  with  his  death ; 
Yet  how,  before  he  died,  and  when  he  died, 
He  conquered  gloriously.     Luke  said  to  them  : 
"He  was  not  taken  at  all  at* unawares; 
Nothing  surprised  and  nothing  daunted  him. 
Nay,  he  rejoiced  in  spirit  that  all  was  now 
Finished  for  him  on  earth  ;  that  he  might  lay 
His  warrior's  harness  off  and  take  his  crown. 
He  said  this  to  his  judges  with  such  calm 
Clear  consciousness  of  speaking  simple  truth, 
Such  sober  confidence  devoid  of  vaunt, 

V 

That  something  like  conviction  seized  on  them 
Listening;  while  on  the  listening  multitude  — 
For  the  basilica  was  thronged —  I  felt 
Fall  a  great  hush  and  a  pathetic  awe. 

.  '  I  know  well  whom  I  have  believed,'  he  said, 


THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.         Book  XXIV. 

'And  my  persuasion  is  complete  that  He 

Is  able  to  keep  that  which  I  have  given 

In  trust  to  Him  against  the  coming  day. 

Yea,  ye  will  surely  send  me  hence  to  die ; 

The  time  of  my  departure  ye  have  set ; 

So  much  is  in  your  power  to  do  to  me  ; 

But  there  is  more,  far  more,  beyond  your  power. 

Life  ye  can  take,  but  not  the  good  of  life. 

The  good  of  life  is  lodged  where  it  is  safe, 

And  life  indeed  no  power  can  take  from  me ; 

That  is  committed  to  almighty  hands, 

Almighty,  and  all-faithful,  and  all-wise : 

There  it  is  mine,  inalienably  mine. 

So  there  is  that  in  me  which  bides  secure 

From  any  terror  men  can  threat  me  with. 

A  witness  in  my  heart  attests  that  I 

Have  fought  the  good  fight,  fought  it  to  the  end  ; 

That  I  have  run  my  race  and  touched  the  goal ; 

Through  all  temptation,  I  have  kept  the  faith. 

I  strain  my  eyes  before  me  and  I  see, 

Shining,  a  crown,  the  crown  of  righteousness, 

Held  in  the  hand  once  pierced  and  pieroed  for  me 

Of  the  arisen  Lord  and  glorified, 

The  righteous  Judge  who  will  award  the  prize. 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  7,5 

That  prize  he  holds  for  me '  -  -  "  Hereon,"  Luke  said, 
"Paul  turned  toward  where  I  stood  —  O,  how  I 

wished 

There  had  been  many  others  with  me  then 
To  hear  what  I  heard,  and  to  take  his  look, 
That  kindling  look  of  large  vicarious  hope  !- 
Paul  turned  toward  me  his  heaven-illumined  face, 
And  added:  'Yea,  for  me  holds  —  nor  for  me 
Alone,  but  with  me  all  men  also  who 
Have  loved  the  bright  appearing  of  the  Lord. 

'  I  have  been  bound,  but  not  the  word  of  God  ; 
That  has  run  freely,  sped  around  the  world. 
I  am  to  die,  but  the  quick  word  of  God, 
So  much  incapable  of  dying,  lives 
Forever  an  invulnerable  life. 
This  Roman  empire,  like  those  empires  old, 
Will  crumble  into  dust  and  pass  away ; 
The  temples  and  the  palaces  of  Rome 
Will  vanish  like  a  vision  from  men's  eyes ; 
But  the  majestic  kingdom  of  my  God 
Will  stand  forever  and  forever  grow. 
Within  its  walls,  I  have  not  built  in  vain  ; 
For  I  have  founded  on  a  corner-stone 


7i 6  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.         Book  XXIV. 

That  never  will  be  moved.     The  earth  we  tread 
Will  tremble  and  be  moved  out  of  its  place ; 
The  heavens  above  us,  sun  and  moon  and  star, 
Will  yet  be  rolled  together  like  a  scroll, 
Or  folded  like  a  vestment  laid  aside  ; 
But  what  on  Jesus  Christ  for  corner-stone 
I,  with  much  prayer  and  many  tears,  in  faith 
Have  builded  to  the  glory  of  His  grace, 
Will  still  in  ever-during  beauty  shine. 

'  But  though  I  speak  thus  of  the  vanishing 
Of  all  this  fabric  of  a  mighty  state, 
All  this  imperial  pomp  and  power  of  Rome, 
And  the  succeeding  of  an. order  new, 
A  heavenly  kingdom  with  a  heavenly  King, 
Yet  know,  O  judges,  that  in  all  good  faith, 
I  ever  everywhere  have  taught  and  shown 
Loyal  submission  to  the  powers  that  be. 
By  letter,  ere  I  came  myself  to  Rome, 
I  charged  this  duty  on  my  brethren  here ; 
I  told  them  they  could  not  in  any  wise 
Obedient  be  to  God,  and  not  obey 
The  powers  by  Him  set  over  them  to  rule  : 
Ask  my  disciples,  make  them  witnesses, 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END. 

They  all  will  testify  I  taught  them  thus. 

Not  that  my  life  is  such  a  prize  to  me  ; 

But  I  would  have  the  holy  name  of  Him 

Who  bought  me  with  His  blood,  and  made  of  me 

A  herald  of  His  glorious  grace  to  men- 

Yea,  I  would  have  that  ever-blessed  Name 

Pure  of  reproach  through  me  before  you  all. 

'  I  thank  my  judges  that  at  least  I  may 
Thus  freely  speak  once  more  before  I  die. 
A  cloud  of  witnesses  around  me  here 
Hangs  in  my  eye  ;  I  might  behold,  beyond 
These  and  above,  innumerably  bright, 
Thick  ranks  of  hovering  angels  beckoning  me ; 
But  I  stretch  out  my  hands  in  suit  to  these, 
My  fellows,  and  beseech  them  one  and  all, 
And  you,  my  judges,  I  beseech  —  and  would 
I  might  beseech  the  whole  world  with  my  voice 
Now  speaking  for  its  last  time  in  men's  ears  !- 
Be  reconciled  through  Jesus  Christ  to  God. 
With  me  it  is  a  light  thing  to  be  judged 
Of  men  ;  albeit  obeisance  due  I  pay 
To  this  tribunal  as  ordained  of  God. 
But  I  look  forward  to  be  judged  of  One 


?Ig  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIV. 

Before  whose  eyes  the  secrets  of  men's  hearts 

Lie  open  like  the  pages  of  a   book. 

And  ye  too  all  who  judge  me,  and  all  these 

Who  see  me  judged  —  yea,  and  himself,  your  head, 

The  emperor,  with  his  counsellors,  and  all 

That  under  earth  slumber  or  in  the  sea, 

The  living  generations  and  the  dead, 

One  congregation  and  assembly  called 

At  last  together  whencesoever  found, 

Shall  stand  before  the  judgment-seat  of  Christ. 

O,  I  adjure  you  and  entreat  you,  hear 

Betimes  my  message  sent  from  God  to  you. 

One  advocate  alone,  none  other,  can 

Plead  to  the  Father  with  effect  for  you. 

But  He  can,  for  it  is  the  Judge  Himself 

Will  be  your  advocate,  if  but  you  will 

Now  choose  Him  to  be  such,  and  He  will  speak 

For  you  with  a  resistless  eloquence 

Of  wounds  shown  in  His  hands  and  feet  and  side, 

Signs  of  His  suffering  borne  in  the  behalf 

Of  all  those  who  will  come  to  God  by  Him. 

'  I  have  a  vision  of  that  judgment-scene  : 
These  wide-embracing  walls  I  see  expand 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  719 

To  the  horizon's  utmost  rim  around ; 

This  roof  is  lifted  to  the  top  of  heaven ; 

This  multitude  is  multiplied  to  count 

Beyond  all  count ;  yon  judgment-throne  becomes 

Dazzling  beyond  the  splendors  of  the  sun 

With  an  exceeding  whiteness,  such  as  eye 

Of  man  nor  angel  can  abide  to  see  ; 

And  He  that  sits  thereon,  and  makes  it  dark 

By  the  excess  of  brightness  in  His  face, 

Speaks,  and  His  voice  to  hear  is  as  the  sound 

Of  many  waters  rolling  down  in  flood. 

I  heard  that  voice  once  speaking  from  the  sky 

Amid  a  blaze  of  light  falling  around 

Me  at  midnoon  that  blanched  the  Syrian  sun 

Burning  from  his  meridian  height  on  me. 

O  men,  my  brethren,  it  was  a  dread  voice  ; 

But  I  obeyed  it,  and  I  therefore  lived. 

Obey  it  ye,  heard  speaking  through  my  lips 

And  bidding,  Come  !  O,  sweet  and  dreadful  voice, 

Both  sweet  and  dreadful,  uttering  now  that  word  ! 

Dreadful,  not  sweet,  it  then  will  sound  to  those 

Who  hearing  thus  the  invitation,  Come, 

Harden  their  hearts  to  disobey.     For  then 

In  changed  tones  it  will  speak  a  different  word. 


720  THE  EPIC  OF  PA  UL.          Book  XXIV. 

''  Hence,  cursed  of  my  Father  ! '  it  will  say, 

And  drive  the  disobedient  as  with  sword 

Of  flame  forth  issuing  and  pursuing  them, 

Pursuing  and  devouring,  while  they  fly 

In  vain  forever  and  forever  far 

Before  it,  and  no  refuge  anywhere 

In  all  the  boundless  universe  of  God 

Find  from  the  fiery  fangs  of  that  fierce  sword  ! ' 

"  I  never  saw,"  said  Luke,  "such  pity  cast 
Such  pathos  over  such  solemnity, 
Such  faithfulness  to  God,  to  man,  as  then, 
While  he  in  that  hushed  audience  spoke  these 

things, 

Lived  in  Paul's  looks  and  tuned  his  prophet  tones. 
No  one  that  listened  and  beheld  escaped 
The  power  of  God  ;  and  some  perhaps  believed. 

"  But  they  condemned  the  guiltless  man  to  die ; 
Ajid,  like  his  Lord,  he  died  without  the  gates. 
They  led  him  to  a  chosen  spot  not  far 
Beyond  the  city  walls  —  he  all  the  way 
Seen  walking  like  one  meekly  triumphing ; 
For  a  train  followed  and  attended  him, 
Before  whom  he  was  as  a  conqueror. 


Book  XXIV.  THE  END.  721 

Where  gushed  a  fountain  in  a  pine-tree  shade 
Suburban,  there  they  made  their  prisoner  stay. 
Here  they  beheaded  him  ;  Christ  suffered  it- 
What  matter  to  His  servant  how  he  died? 
The  pain  was  short,  if  sharp  ;  perhaps  indeed 
There  was  no  pain  at  all,  but  only  swift 
Transition  to  a  state  of  perfect  rest 
From  pain,  from  weariness,  from  every  ill, 
Forever  in  the  presence  of  the  Lord. 

* 

The  dear  dissevered  head  we  joined  again 

To  the  worn-weary  body  as  we  could  : 

We  comforted  ourselves  to  see  the  peace 

That  the  white-shining  countenance  expressed, 

And  stanched  our  tears  and  eased  our  aching  hearts', 

To  think  that  all  his  toil  was  over  now, 

And  all  the  contradiction  he  so  long 

Had  suffered  from  his  thankless  fellow-men ; 

And  that  he  had  aspired  triumphantly 

At  last  to  be  at  home  with  Christ  in  heaven, 

There  to  behold  the  glory  that  He  had, 

Ere  the  beginning  of  the  world,  with  God 

His  Father. 

"So  we  buried  him  in  hope 


722  THE  EPIC  OF  PAUL.          Book  XXIV. 

There  on  the  selfsame  spot  where  he  had  fallen ; 
And  said  to  one  another  the  great  words, 
Heroic,  heartening,  full  of  heavenly  truth, 
Himself  with  streaming  tears  once  spoke  to  us  — 
You  will  remember  —  then  when  Mary  died, 
And  when  we  buried  her  that  sunset  hour 
There  on  that  holy  hill  in  Melita." 

With  such  a  gentle  cadence  to  his  tale, 
Luke  ended ;  and  those  sat  in  silence  long, 
Remembering  with  sweet  heart-ache  what  had  been, 
Then,  having  knelt  together  first  in  prayer, 
And  having  lifted  a  pathetical 
High  hymn  of  triumph  over  death,  they  rose 
Calm  and  addressed  themselves  anew  to  life : 
A  little  patience  and  the  Lord  would  come. 


Opinions  of  "The  Epic  of  Saul, 


By    WILLIAM    CLEAVER    WILKINSON. 


TIIK  INDEPENDENT  (New  York)  says: 

"  It  is  a  poem  cast  in  a  large  mold  and  finished 
with  deliberate  can-.  .  .  .  An  evenness  of  regis 
ter  giving  a  sense  of  power  (if  not  of  a  master, 
still  lofty)  sustained  with  case,  runs  entirely 
through  the  work.  .  .  . 

u It  would  be  pleasant  if  we  could  quote  liber 
ally  from  the  passages  of  superb  beauty  with 
which  the  poem  abounds.  .  .  . 

"  Its  proportions  are  fine,  its  lines  show  large 
curves  of  power.  .  .  .  We  predict  that  it  will 
find  a  host  of  appreciative  and  even  enthusiastic 
readers — a  host  by  no  means  entirely  composed 
of  religious  people  strictly  so-called." 

THE  (London)  SPECTATOR  says: 

''Decidedly  impressive  and  attractive.  .  .  . 
One  never  wants  to  lay  the  book  down,  and 
reads  it  through  with  increasing,  rather  than 
flagging,  interest." 

THE  EXAMINER  (New  York)  says: 

"  This  is  a  great  poem.  ...  In  form  it  is  ad 
mirable.  Dr.  Wilkinson's  verse  is  of  the  Mil 
tonic  type,  rather  than  the  Tennysonian;  strong, 
varied,  narmonious  rather  than  melodic.  For 
an  idyll,  the  Tennysonian  verse  is  excellently 
suited,  but  for  an  epic  the  stronger  verse  is  in 
dispensable.  .  .  .  The  handling  of  the  theme 
giiL'X'estri  IJrowniiiir,  rather  than  Milton.  .  .  .  The 
theme  is  such  that  a  stately  and  Latinized  style 
fits  it  like  a  glove." 

PROP.  MOSES  COIT  TYLER,  LL.D.,  Cornell  Uni 
versity,  writes: 

"The  poem  seems  to  me  to  be  in  its  spirit 
and  method,  in  plot,  arrangement,  and  form  a 
very  genuine  and  high  piece  of  artistic  work. 
From  beginning  to  end,  I  find  in  it  nothing 
careless  or  accidental,  nothing  which  is  not  the 
conscious  result  of  an  elevated  and  ardent  in 
telligence,  brooding  long  and  patiently  over  the 
entire  scheme,  and  over  every  detail  of  it.  I 
have  not  failed  to  observe,  also,  the  perfect 
mastery  which  the  poet  has  obtained  over  the 
historic  environment  of  his  hero— the  outward 
conditions  of  the  time  of  Saul,  the  spiritual  and 
Intellectual  tendencies  with  which  he  fought  or 
was  at  peace. 

"  In  the  distinctness,  variety,  and  life-likeness 
of  even  the  secondary  personages  of  the  poem. 
I  have  had  a  genuine  surprise.  Moreover,  I  find 
in  the  verse  a  union  of  nigh  qualities— severity, 
puritv,  beauty,  power  — which  give  to  it  dis 
tinction.  .  .  .'• 

THE  CHRISTIAN  WORLD  (London)  says: 

"  Mr.  Wilkinson  has  chosen  a  great  and  in 
spiring  subject  for  his  muse,  and  he  has  brought 
to  it  unquestionable  powers,  both  of  insight  and 
of  expression.  ..." 

BISHOP  J.  H.  VINCENT  says: 

"It  is  a  poem  to  be  read  and  reread — a  poem 
that  will  live  a  century  hence." 

THE  WESTERN  RECORDER  says: 

"' The  Epic  of  Saul'  .  .  .  shows  that  the  days 
of  epic  poetry  are  not  past.  ...  Dr.  Wilkinson 
ehows  that  he  is  entitled  to  a  place  in  the  front 
rank  of  the  world's  poets." 


M 11.  MAURICE  THOMPSON  says: 

"The  poem  is  a  superb  piece  of  work  and 
well  worth  studying  for  its  truth  as  well  as  for 
its  romance.  Measured  by  any  standard,  it 
shows  a  solid  body  of  art.  The  story  is  strongly 
imagined,  presenting  frequent,  dramatic  situa 
tions  of  great  power,  and  the  diction  often  i 
to  the  highest  level  of  expression.  Certainly  Dr. 
Wilkinson  is  in  the  succession  of  true  poets." 

PROP.  II.  II.  BOYESEN  says: 

"I  am  much  impressed  with  the  noble  sim 
plicity  of  language  and  the  elevation  of  thought 
m  Dr.  Wilkinson's  'Epic  of  Saul.1  " 

PROF.  RICHARD  G.  MOULTON,  of  the  University 

of  Chicago,  writes: 

"  All  the  poetical  element  of  it  ['  The  Epic  of 
Saul ']  has  given  me  unqualified  enjoyment — the 
skilful  construction  of  the  story,  its  movement 
to  a  climax,  the  side  lights  of  pathos,  the 
imagery  and  flow  of  the  style;  especially  I  may 
instance  the  truly  epic  strokes  with  which  are 
built  up  the  figures  of  Gamaliel  and  the  Mephis 
tophelean  Shimei." 

DR.  ALEXANDER  MCLAREN  (Manchester,  Eng- 

land)  writes: 

"It  is  a  most  striking  and  vigorous  effort  of 
historical  and  psychological  imagination,  cast 
into  worthy  language  and  full  of  contagious 
enthusiasm." 

PROP.  C.  M.  GAYLKY,  of  the  University  of  Cali 
fornia,  writes: 

"Since  it  appeared,  I  have  considered  it  .' .  . 
worthy  of  careful  study  by  each  of  my  senior 
classes  in  turn  as  representative  of  the  enduring 
characteristics  and  possibilities  of  the  literary 
type  to  which  it  belongs.  From  year  to  year 
my  conviction  has  been  confirmed  that  the  poem 
is  epic,  even  if  the  generation  be  non-epical." 

PRES.  STETSON,  of  DesMoines  University,  writes: 
"I  have  been  informed  that  it  has  furni.^hed 
more  appropriate  selections  for  our  students, 
when  they  have  been  called  upon  to  prepare 
recitations  and  declarations,  than  any  other  two 
books  in  our  library." 

PROP.  FUAVKI.IN  JOHNSON,  D.D.,  of  the  Divinity 

School  in  the  University  of  Chicago,  writes: 

"  I  have  repeatedly  spoken  to  my  classes  of  the 

*  Epic  of  Saul '  as  one  of  the  finest  pieces  of 

sacred  poetry  in  our  language." 

THE  CHRISTIAN  ADVOCATE  (New  York)  says: 

"There  are  no  signs  of  haste;  every  line  has 
been  considered,  all  exuberance  of  mere  diction 
has  been  pruned  away,  and  yet  the  result  is  full 
of  life  and  energy.  Mr.  Wilkinson  enters  fully 
into  the  nobility  and  loftiness  of  his  theme.'" 

THE  GRAPHIC  (London)  says: 

"A  finely  conceived  and  powerful  poem.  .  .  . 
Mr.  Wilkinson  seems  to  us  to  have  had  success 
in  a  task  of  large  scope." 

THE  CHRISTIAN  REGISTER  says: 

'•  Mr.  Wilkinson's  epic  will  inevitably  suggest 
comparison  with  Mr.  Arnold's  recent  Light  of 
the  World,  and  if  we  are  not  much  mistaken,  it 
will  be  adjudged  by  far  the  better  poem." 


OPINIONS  OF  "THE  EPIC  OF  SAUL. "— Continued. 


Late  DR.  A.  J.  GORDON  said  (in  The  Watchman): 
"  .  .  .  Judged  by  the  two  standards  of  feeling 
and  literary  taste,  we  believe  the  poem  must  be 
pronounced  a  poem  of  very  high  order.  Cer 
tainly  that  must  be  a  fascinating  book  which  BO 
captures  the  reader's  attention  that  he  finds  it 
difficult  to  lay  it  down  till  the  end  of  the  last 
page  has  been  reached. 

"  .  .  .  When  the  effect  is  such  as  to  make  us 
forget  the  style  and  lose  ourselves  in  emotion,  in 
sympathy,  and,  we  dare  say  at  times,  in  tears, 
the  power  of  the  poem  has  been  settled." 

PROF.  JOHN  F.  GENUNG  says: 

"  It  is  a  noble  poem.  .  .  .  How  Hebrew  it  is, 
and  how  severely  Biblical ! 

"  This  is  my  main  impression:  It  reproduces 
absolutely  the  spirit,  the  relief,  the  perspective 
of  the  Biblical  data;  the  added  parts  are  not  put 
in  for  filling  or  for  sensational  effect,  or  for  orna 
ment;  they  are  just  the  projection  of  what  is 
known  into  what  is  logically  probable  and  con 
sistent —  the  causes,  the  effects,  the  necessary 
details  of  what  Scripture  gives  us  merely  in  epit 
ome.  .  .  ." 

THE  NEWARK  DAILY  ADVERTISER  says: 

"  The  measure  of  the  poem  is  heroic,  its  flow 
is  rhythmic,  and  its  literary  style  is  lofty.  .  .  . 
We  recognize  here  not  a  few  historic  personages, 
but  there  are  introduced  .  .  .  others  whose  pres 
ence  lends  animation  to  the  scene  without  in  the 
leust  disiurbiug  its  realism  or  historic  accuracy.'1 

THE  DETROIT  JOURNAL  says: 

"Blank  verse  of  almost  perfect  rhythm,  a  plot 
and  a  development  in  the  highest  degree  inter 
esting  and  instructive,  a  religious  epic  that,  if 
we  mistake  not,  will  take  its  place  among  the 
poems  of  the  ages." 

THE  BOSTON  TIMES  says: 

"...  The  poem  has  a  real  and  uncommon 
merit  in  the  series  of  character-studies  it  pre 
sents.  Of  the  insight,  sincerity,  and  accuracy 
which  the  author  orings  to  some  of  these  it 
would  be  hard  to  speak  too  strongly.  His  Saul 
is  a  nobly  attractive  creation,  a  consummate 
blending  of  the  man  of  intellect  and  the  man  of 
action.  With  lighter,  but  equally  sustained, 
touch,  he  has  drawn  Saul's  sister,  Rachel.  .  .  . 
Gamaliel,  too,  is  a  life-like  figure,  masterfully 
wrought  out  from  a  well-considered  idea;  and  in 
lesser  degree  the  same  praise  applies  to  Stephen 
the  martyr,  Sergius  Paulus,  Hirani,  and  Mat- 
tathias  —  the  last-named  an  incorporate  concep 
tion  of  Jewish  nationality,  offering  a  most  im 
pressive  contrast  to  Saul." 

The  late  DR.  HOWARD  CROSBY  said: 

"It  seems  to  me  that  the  book  will  secure  the 
claim  of  Prof.  Wilkinson  in  the  front  rank  of 

poets." 

THE  WESTERN  RECORDER  (Louisville,  Ky.)  says: 
"Dr.  Broadus  recently  wrote  to  a  friend:  '  I 
read  every  session  to  my  New  Testament  class 
several  passages  from  the  '  Epic  of  Saul,'  par 
ticularly  the  interview  between  Saul  and  his  sister 
Rachel,  and  I  enjoy  it  mere  myself  every  time  I 
read  it,  though  greatly  struck  at  first  sight." 
THE  COURIER- JOURNAL  (Louisville)  says: 

"  Stately  verse.  .  .  .  The  characters,  Saul, 
Gamaliel,  Ruth,  Rachel,  the  several  Jewish  offi 
cials,  and  Shiuiei,  an  imaginary  character  and 


the  Mephistopheles  of  the  poem,  are  finely 
drawn.  The  analysis  is  bold  and  fearless,  but 
instinct  with  a  wide  sympathy  and  thoughtful- 
ness.  ...  A  certain  amount  of  imagination  is 
indispensable  for  anything  like  a  full  realization 
of  these  personages.  .  .  .  This  imagination  the 
writer  supplies,  and  his  work  has  the  effect  of  a 
telescope;  it  brings  the  reader  very  near  to  the 
human  weakness,  as  well  as  to  the  human 
strength  and  sublimity,  of  these  men.  ..." 

The  late  DR.  J.  A.  BROADUS,  writing  in   The 

Religious  Herald,  said: 

"  We  have  read  The  Epic  of  Saul  with  extraor 
dinary  interest,  and  think  it  a  poem  of  great 
power.  The  scene  '  between  Saul  and  his  sister 
Rachel  (Book  VI.)  is  in  our  judgment  scarcely 
equaled  in  dramatic  force  by  any  modern  Eng 
lish  poet  except  Browning.  ..." 

DR.  GEORGE  DANA  BOARDMAN  says  : 

"  Dr.  Wilkinson's  Epic  of  Saul  is  daring  in 
conception,  subtile  in  analysis,  exquisite  in  de 
lineation,  stately  in  movement,  dramatic  in  un 
folding,  rhythmical  in  expression,  reverent  in 
tone,  uplifting  in  tendency.  The  Poem  of  Saul 
is  as  truly  an  epic  as  Milton's  Paradise  Lost." 

MRS.  ELIZABETH  STUART  PHELPS  WARD  says: 

"  It  seems  to  me  to  have  the  dignity  and  rever 
ence  due  to  the  theme,  and  the  poetic  feeling 
which  must  move  a  man  to  sustain  such  a  work; 
to  have  passages  of  marked  power;  and  a  pur 
pose  which  lifts  it  above  much  of  the  verse  of 
our  day." 

PRESIDENT  ALVAH  HOVEY,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  says: 

"  It  is  a  most  noble  poem.  My  estimate  of  it 
may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  I  have  just 
read  it  through  the  third  time.  Such  an  honor 
I  have  paid  to  no  book  save  the  Bible  for  many 
years.  Bat  I  enjoyed  it  so  much  that  I  could  not 
avoid  doing  it.  I  shall  no  doubt  read  it  again." 

DR.  CHAS.  S.  ROBINSON  says: 

"  A  true  poem,  the  power  of  which  is  unmis 
takable.  .  .  .  Full  of  dramatic  power  and  ingen 
ious  analysis  of  character,  as  well  as  of  splendid 
imagination  and  eloquent  argument." 

The  REV.  PHILIP  S.  MOXOM,  D.D.,  says: 

"There  is  a  singular  consistency  of  language 
with  personality  throughout  the  poem.  Shimei's 
speech  is  like  himself,  ignoble  and  contemptible. 
Saul's,  on  the  contrary,  is  always  strong  and 
genuine,  with  flashes  of  poetic  fire.  The  book 
entitled  k  Ruth  and  Rachel  '  is  full  of  tenderness, 
pathos,  and  divinity.  ...  I  read  i^  to  a  class  of 
young  women  who  are  studying  literature. 
Their  rapt  attention  and  tearful  eyes  testified 
more  strongly  than  any  words  to  the  power  of 
the  poem.  .  .  .  It  will  last.  Now  we  must  have 
the  Epic  of  Paul." 

DR.  H.  K.  CARROLL  (of  The  Independent)  says: 
"  It  is  a  grand  poem  —  noble  in  conception, 
lofty  in  spirit,  strong  in  dramatic  interest,  and 
exquisite  in  purity  and  beauty  of  expression." 
DR.  J.W. 


"...  After  a  careful  examination  of  the  pages 
of  this  work  we  are  constrained  to  say  that  in  its 
merely  poetical  aspects  the  epic  attains  to  a  most 
imposing  grandeur  of  thought  and  expression, 
and  will  be  accepted  by  those  competent  to  judge 
as  a  masterpiece  in  literary  achievement.  ..." 


Large  I2mo,  gilt  top,  386  pp.,  price  $1.50,  post  free. 
FUNK  &  WAQNALLS  COflPANY,  30  Lafayette  Place,  New  York 

. 


UNIVERSITY    OF    CALIFORNIA 
LIBRARY 


This  is  the  date  on  which  this 
book  was  charged  out. 


APH    3    1912 


^H 


6 


ANNOUNCEMENT 


The  Epic  of  Paul 


By    WILLIAM   TLLAYKR    WILKINSON 

Professor  of  Poetry  and  Criticism,  University  of  Chicago 


This  volume  is  the  sequel  of  Prof.  Wilkin 
son's  "  Epic  of  Saul,"  in  the  same  verse, 
which  was  received  by  many  competent 
scholars  and  critics  on  both  sides  of 
the.  Atlantic  as  a  poem  of  solid  worth. 


"The  Epic  of  Saul."     8vo,  cloth,  gilt  top,  386   pp.     Price,  $1.50 

"The  Epic  of  Paul."    8vo,  cloth,  gilt  top,  722   pp.     Price, $2.00 

Price  of  both  volumes,  if  ordered  together,  $3.00 

Postage  free  la  every  case. 


FUNK  &  WAGNALLS  COMPANY 

30  LAFAYETTE  PLACE, 

NEW  YORK 


OPINIONS    OF 

"THE  EPIC  OF  SAUL." 


By    WILLIAM    CLEAVER    WILKINSON. 

TJie  Independent  (New  York)  says : 

"It  is  a  poem  cast  in  a  large  mold  and  finished  with  deliberate  care. 
.  .  .  An  evenness  of  register  giving  a  sense  of  power  (if  not  of  a  master, 
still  lofty)  sustained  with  ease,  runs  entirely  through  the  work.  .  .  . 

"  It  would  be  pleasant  if  we  could  quote  liberally  from  the  passages 
of  superb  beauty  with  which  the  poem  abounds.  .  .  . 

"  Its  proportions  are  fine,  its  lines  show  large  curves  of  power.  .  .  . 
We  predict  that  it  will  find  a  host  of  appreciative  and  even  enthusiastic 
readers  —  a  host  by  no  means  entirely  composed  of  religious  people 
strictly  so  called." 

Tfie  Spectator  (London)  says  : 

"Decidedly  impressive  and  attractive.  .  .  .  One  never  wants  to  lay 
the  book  down,  and  reads  it  through  with  increasing,  rather  than  flag 
ging,  interest." 

TJie  Examiner  (New  York)  says : 

"  This  is  a  great  poem.  ...  In  form  it  is  admirable.  Dr.  Wilkin 
son's  verse  is  of  the  Miltonic  type,  rather  than  the  Tennysonian  ;  strong, 
varied,  harmonious  rather  than  melodic.  For  an  idyl,  the  Tennysonian 
verse  is  excellently  suited,  but  for  an  epic  the  stronger  verse  is  indis 
pensable.  .  .  .  The  handling  of  the  theme  suggests  Browning,  rather 
than  Milton.  .  .  .  The  theme  is  such  that  a  stately  and  Latinized  style 
fits  it  like  a  glove." 

.Pro/.  Moses  Colt  Tyler,  LL.D.,  Cornell  University,  writes: 

"The  poem  seems  to  me  to  be  in  its  spirit  and  method,  in  plot, 
arrangement,  and  form  a  very  genuine  and  high  piece  of  artistic  work. 
From  beginning  to  end,  I  find  in  it  nothing  careless  or  accidental, 
nothing  which  is  not  the  conscious  result  of  an  elevated  and  ardent 
intelligence,  brooding  long  and  patiently  over  the  entire  scheme,  and 
over  every  detail  of  it..  1  have  not  failed  to  observe,  also,  the  perfect 
mastery  which  the  poet  has  obtained  over  the  historic  environment  of 
his  hero  —  the  outward  conditions  of  the  time  of  Saul,  the  spiritual  and 
intellectual  tendencies  with  which  he  fought  or  was  at  peace. 

"In  the  distinctness,  variety,  and  life-likeness  of  even  the  secondary 
personages  of  the  poem,  I  have  had  a  genuine  surprise.  Moreover,  I 
find  in  the  verse  a  union  of  high  qualities  —  severity,  purity,  beauty, 
power  —  which  give  to  it  distinction.  ..." 

2 


The  Christian  World  (London)  says : 

"Mr.  "Wilkinson  has  oboseu  a  great  and  inspiring  subject  for  his 
muse,  and  he  has  brought  to  it  unquestionable  powers,  both  of  insight 
and  of  expression." 

Bishop  J.  H.  Vincent  says : 

"It  is  a  poem  to  be  read  and  reread  —  a  poem  that  will  live  a  cen 
tury  hence." 

The  Western  Recorder  says: 

" '  The  Epic  of  Saul '  .  .  .  shows  that  the  days  of  epic  poetry  are  not 
past.  .  .  .  Dr.  Wilkinson  shows  that  he  is  entitled  to  a  place  in  the  front 
rank  of  the  world's  poets." 

Mr.  Maurice  Thompson  says : 

"The  poem  is  a  superb  piece  of  work  and  well  worth  studying  for 
its  truth  as  well  as  for  its  romance.  Measured  by  any  standard,  it 
shows  a  solid  body  of  art.  The  story  is  strongly  imagined,  presenting 
frequent  dramatic  situations  of  great  power,  and  the  diction  often  rises 
to  the  highest  level  of  expression.  Certainly  Dr.  Wilkinson  is  in  the 
succession  of  true  poets." 

Prof.  H.  H.  Boyesen  says : 

"  I  am  much  impressed  with  the  noble  simplicity  of  language  and 
the  elevation  of  thought  in  Dr.  Wilkinson's  '  Epic  of  Saul.'" 

Prof.  Richard  G.  Moulton,  of  the  University  of  Chicago,  writes  : 

"All  the  poetical  elements  of  it  [' The  Epic  of  Saul']  has  given  me 
unqualified  enjoyment —  the  skilful  construction  of  the  story,  its  move 
ment  to  a  climax,  the  side  lights  of  pathos,  the  imagery  and  flow  of  the 
style ;  especially  I  may  instance  the  truly  epic  strokes  with  which  are 
built  up  the  figures  of  Gamaliel  and  the  Mephistophelean  Shimei." 

Dr.  Alexander  McLaren  (Manchester,  England)  writes : 

"It  is  a  most  striking  and  vigorous  effort  at  historical  and  psycho 
logical  imagination,  cast  into  worthy  language  and  full  of  contagious 
enthusiasm." 

Prof.  C.  M.  Gayley,  of  the  University  of  California,  writes  : 

"  Since  it  appeared,  I  have  considered  it  ...  worthy  of  careful 
study  by  each  of  my  senior  classes  in  turn  as  representative  of  the 
enduring  characteristics  and  possibilities  of  the  literary  type  to  which 
it  belongs.  From  year  to  year  my  conviction  has  been  confirmed  that 
the  poem  is  epic,  even  if  the  generation  be  non-epical." 

Pres.  Stetson,  of  Des  Moines  University,  writes  : 

"I  have  been  informed  that  it  has  furnished  more  appropriate 
selections  for  our  students,  when  they  have  been  called  upon  to  prepare 
recitations  and  declarations,  than  any  other  two  books  in  our  library. " 


Prof.  Franklin  Johnson,  D.D.,  of  the  Divinity  School  in  the  Uni 
versity  of  Chicago,  writes : 

"I  have  repeatedly  spoken  to  my  classes  of  the  'Epic  of  Saul'  as 
one  of  the  finest  pieces  of  sacred  poetry  in  our  language." 

The  Christian  Advocate  (New  York)  says  : 

"  There  are  no  signs  of  haste ;  every  line  has  been  considered,  all 
exuberance  of  mere  diction  has  been  pruned  away,  and  yet  the  result  is 
full  of  life  and  energy.  Mr.  Wilkinson  enters  fully  into  the  nobility 
and  loftiness  of  his  theme." 

TJie  Graphic  (London)  says : 

"  A  finely  conceived  and  powerful  poem.  .  .  .  Mr.  Wilkinson  seems 
to  us  to  have  had  success  in  a  task  of  large  scope." 

The  Christian  Register  says : 

"  Mr.  Wilkinson's  epic  will  inevitably  suggest  comparison  with  Mr. 
Arnold's  recent '  Light  of  the  World,'  and  if  we  are  not  much  mistaken, 
it  will  be  adjudged  by  far  the  better  poem." 

Late  Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon  said  (in  The  Watchman) : 

"...  Judged  by  the  two  standards  of  feeling  and  literary  taste, 
we  believe  the  poem  must  be  pronounced  a  poem  of  very  high  order. 
Certainly  that  must  be  a  fascinating  book  which  so  captures  the  reader's 
attention  that  he  finds  it  difficult  to  lay  it  down  till  the  end  of  the  last 
page  has  been  reached. 

"...  When  the  effect  is  such  as  to  make  us  forget  the  style  and  lose 
ourselves  in  emotion,  in  sympathy,  and,  we  dare  say  at  times,  in  tears, 
the  power  of  the  poem  has  been  settled." 

Pro/.  John  F.  Genung  says : 

"It  is  a  noble  poem.  .  .  .  How  Hebrew  it  is,  and  how  severely 
Biblical ! 

"  This  is  my  main  impression.  It  reproduces  absolutely  the  spirit, 
the  relief,  the  perspective  of  the  Biblical  data ;  the  added  parts  are  not 
put  in  for  filling  or  for  sensational  effect,  or  for  ornament :  they  are 
just  the  projection  of  what  is  known  into  what  is  logically  probable 
and  consistent  —  the  causes,  the  effects,  the  necessary  details  of  what 
Scripture  gives  us  merely  in  epitome.  ..."  , 

The  Newark  Daily  Advertiser  says : 

"The  measure  of  the  poem  is  heroic,  its  flow  is  rhythmic,  and  its 
literary  style  is  lofty.  .  .  .  We  recognize  here  not  a  few  historic  person 
ages,  but  there  are  introduced  .  .  .  others  whose  presence  lends  anima- 
tion  to  the  scene  without  in  the  least  disturbing  its  realism  or  historic 
accuracy." 

4 


The  Boston  Times  says : 

"...  The  poem  has  a  real  and  uncommon  merit  in  the  series  of 
character-studies  it  presents.  Of  the  insight,  sincerity,  and  accuracy 
which  the  author  brings  to  some  of  these  it  would  be  hard  to  speak  to 
strongly.  His  Saul  is  a  nobly  attractive  creation,  a  consummate  blend 
ing  of  the  man  of  intellect;  and  the  man  of  action.  With  lighter,  but 
equally  sustained,  touch,  he  has  drawn  Saul's  sister,  Rachel.  .  .  , 
Gamaliel,  too,  is  a  life-like  figure  masterfully  wrought  out  from  a 
well-considered  idea ;  and  in  lesser  degree  the  same  praise  applies  to 
Stephen  the  martyr,  Sergius  Paulus,  Hirani,  and  Mattathias  —  the  last- 
named  an  incorporate  conception  of  Jewish  nationality,  offering  a  most 
impressive  contrast  to  Saul." 

The  Courier- Journal  (Louisville)  says: 

"  Stately  verse.  .  .  .  The  characters,  Saul,  Gamaliel,  Ruth,  Rachel, 
the  several  Jewish  officials,  and  Shimei,  an  imaginary  character  and  the 
Mephistopheles  of  the  poem,  are  finely  drawn.  The  analysis  is  bold  and 
fearless,  but  instinct  with  a  wide  sympathy  and  thoughtfulness.  ...  A 
certain  amountof  imagination  is  indispensable  for  anything  like  a  full 
realization  of  these  personages.  .  .  .  This  imagination  the  writer  sup 
plies,  and  his  work  has  the  effect  of  a  telescope:  it  brings  the  reader  very 
near  to  the  human  weakness,  as  well  as  to  the  human  strength  and 
sublimity,  of  these  men.  ..." 

Dr.  H.  K.  Carroll  (of  The  Independent)  says : 

"It  is  a  grand  poem  —  noble  in  conception,  lofty  in  spirit,  strong  in 
dramatic  interest,  and  exquisite  in  purity  and  beauty  of  expression." 

Dr.  George  Dana  Boardman  says : 

"Dr.  Wilkinson's  'Epic  of  Saul'  is  daring  in  conception,  subtile  in 
analysis,  exquisite  in  delineation,  stately  in  movement,  dramatic  in 
unfolding,  rhythmical  in  expression,  reverent  in  tone,  uplifting  in  ten 
dency.  The  Poem  of  Saul  is  as  truly  an  epic  as  Milton's  Paradise  Lost." 

Mrs.  Elizabeth  Stuart  Phelps  Ward  said : 

"It  seems  to  me  to  have  the  dignity  and  reverence  due  to  the 
theme,  and  the  poetic  feeling  which  must  move  a  man  to  sustain  such  a 
work;  to  have  passages  of  marked  power;  and  a  purpose  which  lifts  it 
above  much  of  the  verse  of  our  day." 

President  Alvah  Hovey,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  says: 

"  It  is  a  most  noble  poem.  My  estimate  of  it  may  be  inferred  from 
the  fact  that  I  have  just  read  it  through  the  third  time.  Such  an  honor 
I  have  paid  to  no  book  save  the  Bible  for  many  years.  But  I  enjoyed  it 
so  much  that  I  could  not  avoid  doing  it.  I  shall  no  doubt  read  it  again." 

Dr.  Charles  S.  Robinson  says: 

"  A  true  poem,  the  power  of  which  is  unmistakable.  .  .  .  Full  of 
dramatic  power  and  ingenious  analysis  of  character,  as  well  as  of 
splendid  imagination  and  eloquent  argument." 

5 


The  Rev.  Philip  S.  Moxom,  V.D.,  says: 

"There  is  a  singular  consistency  of  language  with  personality 
throughout  the  poem.  Shiraei's  speech  is  like  himself,  ignoble  and 
contemptible.  Saul's,  on  the  contrary,  is  always  strong  and  genuine, 
with  flashes  of  poetic  fire.  The  book  entitled  '  Ruth  and  Rachel '  is  full 
of  tenderness,  pathos,  and  divinity.  ...  I  read  it  to  a  class  of  young 
women  who  are  studying  literature.  Their  rapt  attention  and  tearful 
eyes  testified  more  strongly  than  any  words  to  the  power  of  the  poem. 
.  .  .  It  will  last  Now  we  must  have  the  '  Epic  of  Paul.' " 

President  Augustus  H.  Strong,  I). I).,  LL.D.,   Rochester  Theo 
logical  Seminary,  says : 

"  I  completed  yesterday  the  reading  of  '  The  Epic  of  Saul.'  It  has 
been  a  growing  satisfaction  ever  since  I  began.  You  give  one  the 
sense  of  repose  which  belongs  to  a  classic.  The  story  moves  steadily 
forward  to  its  culmination.  There  are  few  lapses  or  digressions,  if 
there  are  any.  I  have  been  trying  to  find  something  with  which  to 
compare  your  work,  but  nothing  affords  a  parallel  unless  it  is  Milton. 
I  recognize  in  you  the  same  severe  self-restraint,  the  same  avoidance  of 
anything  common  or  unclean,  the  same  large  air,  the  same  holy  pur 
pose,  that  are  characteristic  of  '  Paradise  Lost.'  But  then  I  must  say, 
gratefully  and  devoutly,  that  you  have  written  a  more  spiritual  and 
Christian  poem  than  Milton  composed.  In  fact  I  think  this  is  what 
will  be  said  of  you  :  You  have  led  the  way  into  a  divine  sort  of  poetical 
composition  which  the  princes  of  this  world  of  song  have  never  known 
or  compassed.  You  touch  the  heart  at  deeper  depths  than  any  modern 
poet  except  the  author  of  '  In  Memorian,'  and  he  only  at  intervals  and 
with  many  counterbalancing  surrenders  to  doubt.  Yours  is  not  only  a 
thoroughly  spiritual,  but  also  a  thoroughly  believing  poem.  By  virtue 
of  its  stalwart  and  unwavering  faith,  I  believe  it  will  live  and  will  bless 
the  world.  I  wish  most  highly  to  commend  the  psychology  of  the  poem. 
I  have  never  seen  Saul's  mental  processes  so  graphically  or  so  truthfully 
depicted.  The  fault  of  most  accounts  has  been  either  that  they,  like 
Renan's,  explain  the  inward  by  the  outward,  so  as  to  leave  Saul's  con 
version  utterly  unlike  that  of  the  ordinary  Christian,  or,  like  Baur's, 
explain  the  outward  by  the  inward,  and  discredit  the  supernatural 
altogether.  You  combine  the  two,  making  each  explain  and  help  the 
other.  I  shall  tell  my  students  henceforth  that  the  most  intelligible 
picture  of  Saul's  conversion  is  to  be  found  in  your  Epic.  This  is  your 
sort  of  imagination.  You  have  organized  the  material  and  have  made  a 
consistent  and  living  story,  which  does  not  add  to,  so  much  as  it  eluci 
dates,  the  Scripture  narrative.  I  could  desire  occasionally  more 
imagery,  more  melody,  more  passion;  but  you  have  a  calm,  clear,  flow, 
and  a  convergence  of  all  lines  to  the  one  great  end,  which  show  imagi 
nation  of  a  masterly  sort;  and  at  times  the  imagery,  the  melody,  the 
passion,  are  not  lacking.  I  could  criticise  details  —  your  compound 
words  and  your  involution  do  not  always  please  me,  and  at  times  com 
pression  makes  you  as  difficult  as  is  Browning  —  but  I  thank  you  and  I 
thank  God  for  so  great  a  poem." 


Extracts  from  "The  Epic  of  PauL 


PAUL    TELLS     HOW    HIS     PRAISE    OF    LOVE 
WAS     CONCEIVED. 


From  "Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  <£  Wagnalls  Company.) 

A  wish  ineffable  seized  me  to  make 

Love  lovely  to  those  loveless  ones.     I  had, 

With  the  wish  born,  and  of  the  wish  perhaps, 

A  sudden  vision  that  entranced  me  quite. 

I  saw  love  take  a  body  beautiful 

And  live  and  act  in  a  most  angelic  wise  : 

It  was  as  if  a  heavenly  spectacle 

Let  down  before  me  by  a  heavenly  hand  — 

Not  to  be  viewed  with  unanointed  eyes  ; 

I  touched  my  eyes  with  eyesalve  and  beheld. 

Then  a  Voice  said,  'What  thou  beholdest,  write.' 

I  took  my  pen  and  sought  to  catch  the  grace. 

Of  being  and  behavior  shown  to  me, 

And  fix  it.  as  I  could,  in  form  and  phrase, 

For  those  Corinthians  and  all  men  to  see. 

A  living  picture,  and  a  hymn,  there  grew. 

"  Hymn  I  may  call  my  eulogy  of  love, 
Then  written,  for  indeed  it  seemed  to  sing 
Within  me,  as  I  mused  it,  and  the  tune 
Still  to  the  hearing  of  my  heart  is  sweet. 
I  felt,  and  feel,  a  kind  of  awe  of  it, 
Myself  that  made  it,  for  I  did  not  make 
It  wholly,  I  myself,  I  know  quite  well  ; 
A  breath  divine,  breathed  in  me,  purified 
My  will  to  will  it,  and  my  soul  to  sing. 


THE     END     OF     SHIMEI. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  cfe  Wagnalls  Company.) 

The  watchers  huddling  on  the  deck  beheld 
In  silence  —  for  now  also  Paul  was  dumb — 
The  imminent  menace  of  the  elements. 
Then  what  might  seem  a  frightful  sign  from  heaven ! 
A  leap  of  lightning  and  a  rending  roar 
Of  thunder  at  one  selfsame  moment  broke, 
Sudden,  and  nigh  at  hand  —  as  if  he,  seen 
Of  John  on  Patmos  isle,  that  angel  dread 
(Who,  setting  his  right  foot  upon  the  sea 
And  his  left  foot  upon  the  land,  so  cried 
With  a  loud  voice)  now  standing  on  this  ship 
Had  once  more  cried  and  loosed  the  thunders  seven, 
So  manifold  the  noise  ! — and  therewith  swayed 
The  sword  of  God  in  a  descending  stroke 
On  some  one  there  select  for  punishment. 
They  looked,  and,  lo,  the  fearful  stroke  had  fallen 
On  Shimei ;  he  lay  lifeless  on  the  deck. 
No  motion,  save  of  falling,  and  no  voice  — 
Appalling  silence  and  appalling  calm  ! 
Close  at  the  foot  of  the  tall  mast  he  fell, 
Against  which  with  his  shoulder  he  had  leaned 
To  stay  him  where  he  stood  and  watched  the  storm. 
The  storm  seemed  broken  with  that  burst  of  rage, 
And  quieted  itself  through  slow  degrees 
Of  sullenness  to  peace.     But  the  tall  mast 
At  top  had  been  enkindled  with  the  touch 
Of  the  fell  lightning,  and  it  burned  a  while 
Lifted  amid  the  tempest  and  the  night, 
A  beacon  naming  from  the  Most  High  God. 


THE     SHIPWRECK. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  A  WagnaUft  Company.) 

The  south  wind  softly  blew  a  favoring  breeze 
As  forth  they  put  and  stood  for  Italy. 
But  that  fair  mother  in  her  bosom  bore 
Offspring  of  storm  that  hastened  to  the  birth. 
For  soon  the  fondling  weather  changed  to  fierce, 
And,  blustering  from  the  north,  Euraquilo 
Beat  down  with  all  his  wings  upon  the  sea, 
Which  under  that  rough  brooding  writhed  in  foam 
To  whirlpool  ready  to  engulf  the  ship. 
No  momentary  tempest  swift  as  wild  ; 
But  blast  of  winter  wanting  never  breath 
Poured  from  all  quarters  of  the  sky  at  once 
And  caught  the  vessel  like  a  plaything  up 
Hurling  it  hither  and  thither  athwart  the  deep. 
The  sails  were  rent  and  shredded  from  the  masts  ; 
The  boat,  to  be  the  hope  forlorn  of  life, 
Was  hardly  come  by,  so  the  hungry  wave 
Desired  it  as  a  morsel  to  its  maw. 

The  ship  through  all  her  timbers  groaned  and  shrieked 
And  all  her  joints  seemed  melting  with  the  fray 
And  fracture  of  the  jostling  elements. 


YOUNG    STEPHEN    AND    FELIX. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company.) 

The  youth's  ear  quivering  quick  with  jealous  love 
Snatched  Felix's  last  words,  his  ravening  eye 
Seized  on  the  splendid  vision  of  his  bride 
9 


Betrothed,  gleaming  there  in  her  loveliness 

Illumined  so  with  virtue  and  with  shame 

Beside  her  mother,  facing  such  a  foe. 

His  instinct  was  far  swifter  than  his  thought ; 

Counting  not  odds,  not  deeming  there  was  odds, 

He  like  an  arrow  from  a  bow  that  twanged 

Shot  into  place  between  his  bride  and  him, 

That  spoiler,  and  there  stood.    His  face  he  turned 

Defiantly  on  Felix,  lightning  of  scorn 

In  sheafs  of  flashes  shooting  from  his  eyes, 

Distended  his  fine  nostrils  with  disdain, 

His  right  arm  raised  in  gesture  to  forefend, 

And  his  light  frame  a-quiver  with  repose 

Of  purpose  to  dare  all  and  to  prevail. 


KRISHNA     THE     BUDDHIST     SPEAKS. 


From  "Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company.) 

"  We  of  the  East,  O  Publius,  are  not  such 
As  you  are  of  the  West.     We  do  not  count 
The  years  as  you  do,  fixing  fast  our  dates. 
We  live  content  a  kind  of  timeless  life 
That  moves  continuous  on  from  age  to  age 
Unreckoned.     Countless  generations  come 
And  go,  and  come  and  go,  like  forest  leaves 
From  year  to  year,  and  no  one  takes  account 


10 


Of  those  more  than  of  these.     Why  should  we  ?    Those, 

As  these,  are  ever  to  each  other  like, 

Harvest  and  harvest  endlessly  the  same. 

What  profit  were  there  in  a  history, 

What  history  indeed  were  possible, 

Of  either  leaves  or  men  ?    Let  leaves  and  men 

Together  to  oblivion  go  ;  be  sure 

There  will  not  fail  to  follow  leaves  and  men, 

To  fill  the  places  never  vacant  left. 


PAUL    TO    KRISHNA. 


From  Wilkinson's  "  Epic  of  Paul  "  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  <t  WagnaUs  Company.) 

"  No  God  find  I  in  all  the  Buddha's  thought  — 
A  ghastly  gap  of  void  and  nothingness, 

0  Krishna,  to  the  orphaned  human  heart, 
That  aches  with  longing  and  with  loneliness  — 
A  weanling  infant  left  forlorn  of  God  — 

And,  '  O,  that  I  might  find  Him  ! '  ceaseless  cries, 
In  yearnings  that  will  not  be  pacified, 
Fatherless  in  a  dreadful  universe  ! 

1  would  thy  Buddha  had  felt  after  God, 

A.nd  haply  found  Him,  or  been  found  of  Him  ! 
I  wonder  if,  not  knowing  it,  he  did ! 


11 


KRISHNA    THE    BUDDHIST    TO    PAUL. 

[After  Paul  has  spoken  of  God  as  Father  to  those  who  fear  Him.] 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  &  Wagnatts  Company.) 

Krishna  could  not  but  speak  his  froward  thought 
"  It  looks  such  contradiction  to  the  fact 
Staring  us  in  the  face  from  round  about 
Us  wheresoever  in  the  world  we  turn 
Our  eyes,  and  see  the  seeming  pitiless 
Ongoing  of  the  blind  necessity 
That,  deaf  and  blind  and  irresistible, 
Rides  like  a  Juggernaut  upon  his  car 
Crushing  beneath  the  wheels  the  hearts  of  men, 
And  spirting  up  their  blood  to  splash  his  feet ! " 

Unwonted  passion  heaved  the  Indian's  breast, 
And  shook  the  tones  in  which  he  said  these  things. 
Paul  gently  made  reply  as_one  that  knew : 


KRISHNA    MUSES    AFTER    HIS    CONVERSION. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company.) 

Nirvana,  that  I  erst  befooled  myself 
To  deem  desirable,  what  dreary  doom, 
Were  it !    Instead  of  life,  and  love,  and  joy, 
True  peace,  and  ever-springing  gratitude 
Growing  greater  every  moment,  like  a  stream 


Increasing  every  moment  to  the  sea 

With  fresh  floods  from  fresh  tributaries  poured  — 

Instead  of  this,  blank  death  and  nothingness  ; 

End  unattainable,  I  now  can  see. 

Even  were  it  good.     To  lose  this  power  to  think. 

And  suffer,  and  enjoy,  to  quench  in  night 

Utter,  unending,  reason's  starry  lamp, 

And  hope's,  and  memory's,  and  be  naught  at  all ! 

I  shudder  backward  from  the  crumbling  brink 

Of  such  annihilation  of  myself, 

Imagined  only,  and  I  eager  spring 

Endeavoring  upward  toward  that  different  good, 

Assured  to  me,  and  native  now  I  know, 

The  prospect  of  eternal  life  with  joy. 


THE    APOSTLE    PAUL    IN    CHAINS. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic   of  Paul"   by   permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  A,  WagnaUs  Company.) 

Paul's  hand  was  manacled,  but  not  his  soul ; 

That,  given  the  freedom  of  the  universe, 

Ranged  as  at  will  on  wing  omnipotent 

Through  all  the  heights  and  depths  of  space  and  tim< 

And  saw  unutterable  things,  which  he 

Seeking  to  lade  upon  expression  made 

The  very  pillars  of  expression  bend 

And  sway  and  totter,  like  to  sink,  beneath 

The  burden  insupportable  they  bore. 


13 


SIMON    REPORTS    OF    NERO    TO    DRUSILLA. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  <fe  Wagnatts  Company.) 

"Know,  O  my  lady  —  empress,  by  just  right 

Of  high  ambition  and  of  mettle  high  — 

Lucius  Domitius  Nero  Caesar,  proud 

Young  wearer  of  the  crown  that  Julius  wore  — 

Or  would  not  wear,  but  three  times  put  it  by  — 

Successor  to  the  great  Augustus,  who 

Earth's  jarring  fragments  welded  to  a  whole, 

And  settled  order  government  and  peace  — 

Conscious  of  his  own  merit,  condescends 

To  ease  his  aching  shoulders  of  the  weight 

Of  empire  by  indulging  now  and  then 

In  certain  little  pranks  of  pleasantry, 

More  lively,  as  might  seem,  than  dignified. 

He  dons  him  his  disguise,  and,  sallying  forth, 

Goes  roystering  through  the  streets  incognito, 

Attended  by  a  well-becoming  rout 

Of  boon  companions  in  hilarity  — 

Much  to  the  scandal  of  good  citizens, 

Specially  such  as  happen  to  be  out ; 

These  often  get  quite  tumbled  up  and  down 

In  the  wild  frolic  of  imperial  sport. 

They  make  the  night  —  these  rouses  are  by  night  — 

Merry  with  jocund  laughter,  and  with  song 

That  would  be  ribald,  save  that  it  is  sung 

By  a  divine  Augustus  in  his  cups. 

I  am  permitted,  as  ambassador 

From  this  imperial  personage,  to  bear 

Thee  courteous  salutations,  and  to  say 

The  emperor  deems  thee  worthy  to  be  queen, 

Thinks  thou  perhaps  wast  widowed  in  good  time 

To  make  thee  to  a  nobler  fortune  free  ; 

Begs  thou  wilt  name  the  night  when  he  may  come 

In  person  and  pay  imperial  court  to  thee." 


14 


DRUSILLA    IN    A    PASSION. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  funk  &  Wagnatts  Company.) 

Brasilia's  fury  now  redoubled  rose  ; 
With  blazing  eyes,  she  rather  hissed  than  said  : 
"  He  takes  Drusilla  to  be  such  as  that ! 
Will  seek  me  under  cover  of  the  dark  ! 
Hark  thee,  7  to  be  visited  by  stealth, 
The  happy  finish  of  a  night's  carouse  ! 
Give  him  my  compliments  and  tell  him,  Nay  ! 
Bid  him  by  daylight  come,  in  proper  state, 
And,  bringing  with  him  his  empire,  cast  it  down 
A  proffered  bauble  at  Brasilia's  feet  — 
I  will  consider  of  the  matter  then. 
Up,  go,  speed,  tell  him  what  I  thus  have  said. 
I  am  in  haste  to  wash  this  stain  away, 
And  fling  his  insult  back  into  his  face. 
He  is  mighty,  he  —  but  I  am  haughty,  I ; 
I  am  as  haughty  as  he  mighty  is.  ^ 

I  burn  in  hell  until  he  knows  this  from  me. 
Thou  hangest  —  wilt  not  go  ?  —  art  false  to  me  ? 
Aye,  thou  art  false,  or  thou  hadst  out  of  hand 
Told  him  thou  knewest  Brusilla  otherwise 
Than  to  dare  take  her  such  a  word  as  that !  " 

LUKE    REPORTS    THE    MARTYRDOM    OF   PAUL. 


From  Wilkinson's  "Epic  of  Paul"  by  permission. 
(Copyright  1897  by  Funk  cfe  Wagnalls  Company.) 

"I  never  saw,"  said  Luke,  "such  pity  cast 
Such  pathos  over  such  solemnity, 
Such  faithfulness  to  God,  to  man,  as  then, 
While  he  in  that  hushed  audience  spoke  these  things. 
Lived  in  Paul's  looks  and  tuned  his  prophet  tones. 
No  one  that  listened  and  beheld  escaped 
The  power  of  God  ;  and  some  perhaps  believed. 

But  they  condemned  the  guiltless  man  to  die  ; 
And,  like  his  Lord,  he  died  without  the  gates. 
They  led  him  to  a  pleasant  spot  not  far 
Beyond  the  city  walls  —  he  all  the  way 
15 


Seen  walking  like  one  meekly  triumphing  ; 

For  a  train  followed  and  attended  him. 

Before  whom  he  was  as  a  conqueror. 

Where  gushed  a  fountain  in  a  pine-tree  shade 

Suburban,  there  they  made  their  prisoner  stay. 

Here  they  beheaded  him  ;  Christ  suffered  it  — 

What  matter  to  His  servant  how  he  died? 

The  pain  was  short,  if  sharp  ;  perhaps  indeed 

There  was  no  pain  at  all,  but  only  swift 

Transition  to  a  state  of  perfect  rest 

From  pain,  from  weariness,  from  every  ill, 

Forever  in  the  presence  of  the  Lord. 

The  dear  dissevered  head  we  joined  again 

To  the  worn-weary  body  as  we  could. 

We  comforted  ourselves  to  see  the  peace 

That  the  white-shining  countenance  expressed, 

And  stanched  our  tears  and  eased  our  aching  hearts 

To  think  that  all  his  toil  was  over  now, 

And  all  the  contradiction  he  so  long 

Had  suffered  from  his  thankless  fellow -men  ; 

And  that  he  had  aspired  triumphantly 

At  last  to  be  at  home  with  Christ  in  heaven, 

There  to  behold  the  glory  that  He  had, 

Ere  the  beginning  of  the  world,  with  God  His  Father. 

"  So  we  buried  him  in  hope 
There  on  the  self -same  spot  where  he  he  fallen  ; 
And  said  to  one  another  the  great  words, 
Heroic,  heartening,  full  of  heavenly  truth, 
Himself  with  streaming  tears  once  spoke  to  us  — 
You  will  remember  —  then  when  Mary  died, 
And  when  we  buried  her  that  sunset  hour 
There  on  that  holy  hill  in  Melita." 

With  such  a  gentle  cadence  to  his  tale, 
Luke  ended  ;  and  those  sat  in  silence  long, 
Remembering  with  sweet  heart-ache  what  had  been. 
Then,  having  knelt  together  first  in  prayer, 
And  having  lifted  a  pathetical 
High  hymn  of  triumph  over  death,  they  rose 
Calm  and  addressed  themselves  anew  to  life  ; 
A  little  patience  and  the  Lord  would  come. 
16 


ilkinson 

ic   of  Plaul 


